CHICAGO — Malcolm X used a high-efficiency shooting night and big performances from its backcourt to defeat Kennedy-King 95–72 on Saturday afternoon.

Joaquin Dixon led all scorers with 28 points, shooting 11 of 17 from the field and a perfect 3 of 3 from deep. He added six rebounds and three assists while committing just one turnover in 31 minutes. Denyell Rush followed with a strong double-double, finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds while going 8 of 9 from the free-throw line.

Forward Arnas Samaitis contributed 11 points and six rebounds, attacking both the offensive and defensive glass effectively. Off the bench, Jymier Garry-Shields added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while Gabe Jackson and Karim Lebon-Mohamed combined for 13 points to keep the Hawks’ lead steady.

Kennedy-King was paced by Reggie Ray, who scored a team-high 23 points while going 13 of 17 from the free-throw line. Jerrold Brock III gave the Statesmen valuable scoring off the bench with 9 points on a perfect 3-for-3 shooting night, and Javon Warfield added 14 points, hitting six of his 13 attempts.

Elias Vargas contributed 8 points for KKC, and Bangout Mai added 8 points and four rebounds off the bench. Kelsey Tarver led Kennedy-King on the glass with seven rebounds while scoring 2 points.

Malcolm X shot 52.4% from the field and 6 of 16 from three, while holding Kennedy-King to 37.7% shooting. The Hawks used a 41–27 first half to create separation and outscored Kennedy-King again in the second to close out the win.