Gritty effort propels Kings over Rattlers on the road

Brent Forster - RDC

Medicine Hat, AB - After a road loss on Friday, the RDC Kings quickly regrouped and had an excellent showing down south against the Medicine Hat College Rattlers. The Rattlers led 52-49 at the half but the Kings came on strong in the latter half, outscoring the home team 45-39 to earn a 94-91 victory.

Bachelor of Education student Spencer Klassen was outstanding once again, playing all 40 minutes while stacking up 30 points, five rebounds and going ten-for-ten from the free-throw line. The six-foot-two guard from Red Deer deservedly received the Kings Player-of-the-Game award.     

Kieron Burgess earned the award for the Rattlers, totaling 27 points, 11 rebounds and one assist.

RDC's Barzin Eskandarkhah played well, accumulating 24 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Ramiro Martinez Quintanilla Jimenez contributed 18 points, six rebounds and one block. Eric Bakker chipped in with 12 points.

As a team, the Kings picked up 37 boards and impressively shot 90.3 per cent from the free-throw line. Comparatively, the Rattlers were 51.2 per cent from the line.

With the road win, the RDC Kings (6-8) move within four points of the fourth place Lethbridge College Kodiaks (8-5) for the final playoff spot in the south. 

On Friday, January 25, the Red Deer College Kings will host the Lethbridge College Kodiaks at 8:00 p.m. at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre, which will shape up to be an important weekend.