Down But Never Out: Busters Complete Epic Comeback vs. No. 11 Butler

Photo by: Adam SHrimplin/Garden City Athletics

Garden City, KS–Down 12 in the fourth quarter to the 11th-ranked team in the country, Garden City refused to blink.

Behind a monster night from sophomore guard Sokhna Ndiaye, the Broncbusters stormed back to stun No. 11 Butler, 71–67 in overtime on Wednesday at Conestoga Arena, handing the Grizzlies their first loss of the season.

The game was tight early, with the teams knotted at 15 after the first quarter before Butler edged in front 30–26 at the half. The Grizzlies pushed that margin to double figures in the third and carried a 48–46 lead into the fourth, then appeared to seize control at 58–46 with just under six minutes to play.

That's when Garden City caught fire. Elektra Mjoll drilled a wing three, Ndiaye answered with back-to-back triples, and London Turner sliced in for a layup to pull the Busters within a possession. Another Mjoll three cut the deficit to four, and after a defensive stand, Ndiaye buried a deep right-side three with 10 seconds left to tie the game at 62–62 and force overtime.

In the extra session, Garden City's defense clamped down while its veterans closed it out at the line. Marshea Fishercalmly sank two free throws to give the Busters their first OT lead, Turner finished a tough driving layup, and Ndiaye went 4-for-4 at the stripe in the final minutes before Mjoll added one more free throw to seal the upset.

Ndiaye finished with a game-high 29 points, knocking down 5-of-10 from three and a perfect 6-for-6 at the line. Mjoll added 14 points off the bench, including four huge threes between the fourth quarter and OT, while Turner totaled 8 points and 8 assists. Fisher stuffed the stat sheet with 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals, and Deija Roberson and Caryle Fortas combined for 15 points and 9 boards as Garden City improved to 8–1 overall, 3–1 in Jayhawk Conference play.

Butler, which came in 9–0 and ranked 11th nationally, was held to 23.8% from three and turned it over 24 times against Garden City's pressure, as the Broncbuster bench outscored the Grizzlies' reserves 17–6 in one of the program's biggest wins in recent memory.

Next up, Garden City hits the road to take on Independence Community College on Saturday, Dec. 6 in Independence.