By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IN his final home game for the Niagara College Knights at the Welland Campus Athletic Centre, guard Van ‘Bubba’ Hutchinson Jr put on another spectacular performance.

Hutchinson pumped in a game high 43 points, shooting 19-for-26 from the field, 3-for-7 from behind the three-point arch and 2-for-5 from the free throw line to highlight the Knights’ 124-84 rout over the visiting Conestoga Condors.

While leading two other players in double figures, Hutchinson also finished with a triple double with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He even picked up four steals with four turnovers and recorded a personal foul, all 32 minutes of play.

“It was a great performance, especially from the field. I felt good,” Hutchinson told The Tribune. “It was an all around complete game for me on both ends of the court, defensively and offensively. It was a good night.”

The win pushed the second place Niagara to a 13-5 win-loss record with just one more game left in the regular season. They will play that game on Saturday when they head on the road to face Fanshawe.

“It was good to close out the regular season at home on a good note like we did,” Hutchinson said. “I went out there and played as hard as I could on every possession.

“We are now in second place in the standings, but we should have been in first place. We just let a few games slip away from us. But I feel good and confident that we can get it together for the rest of the season.”

Lequan Hylton followed Hutchinson with 20 points and Johnnie Richardson added 13 points and six assists. Bahamian Kevin Cooper contributed six points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal in 12 points off the bench.

“We’ve had a Bahamian connection here before I got here and it’s getting better and better,” said Hutchinson about playing with another Bahamian on the same team.

“We hope that it continue after we finish because it makes you so much more comfortable with the chemistry of your game. It feels good to actually be playing somebody from your culture. It makes you feel at home. It’s a plus.”

Hutchinson, who posted a career high 56 points with 13 rebounds in a loss to St Clair Saints in a OCAA West divisional match-up in November, said he just hope that the Knights can go all the way and win the championship title.

Through their first 16 games of the season, Hutchinson is averaging 35.7 minutes, while shooting 24.7 points, 12.9 rebounds, 7.1 assists, 2-7 steals and 0.4 block shots per game.

The 24-year-old 6-feet-4 son of Van Hutchinson Sr is a General Arts major.