March 5, 2007

Tigers struggle from beyond the arc in 76-59 loss at
Allen County

Making just 1-of-17 shots from beyond the three-point line, the Cowley College men’s basketball team suffered a 76-59 loss at Allen County Saturday. The loss made the Tigers the 10th seed in the region, meaning Cowley will not be hosting the first-round of the Region VI playoffs.

Cowley rallied from a 10-point deficit (34-24) in the first half and an eight-point deficit (49-41) in the second half to trail just 53-52 with 5:30 remaining. However, the Red Devils outscored the Tigers 23-7 to end the game.

“We could not make any jump shots and group some stops together when we needed to,” assistant coach Brandon Lesovsky said.

Cowley got solid play from its inside players as Sanijay Watts finished with 22 points and seven rebounds, while Santwon Latunde and Ludovic Dovonou added 10 points apiece. Unfortunately, only three other players scored in the loss.

Cowley finishes the regular season in a tie for fifth place in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division. The Tigers are now 16-14 overall and 10-8 in the conference.

Cowley will play at seventh-seeded Garden City Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Broncbusters finished in a tie for fourth in the Jayhawk West with a conference mark of 9-7.

“If you are not one of the top-two teams in the (Jayhawk) east, you are going to get a tough match against a team from the (Jayhawk) west,” Lesovsky said. “Obviously, you put yourself in a whole by going on the road.”

Perry Petty’s 23 points led Allen County. The Red Devils finished in a tie for second in the Jayhawk East (22-8 overall, 12-6 in conference) and earned the sixth seed in the Region VI Tournament.

If Cowley defeats Garden City on Wednesday, the Tigers would play the winner of No. 2 Coffeyville vs. No. 8 Butler Sunday at 7 p.m. at Wichita State University’s Koch Arena.

“It’s a one game season now,” Lesovsky said. “I think we will respond well.”

Box score:
Cowley (59): Sanijay Watts 11-15 0-1 22, Matt Muncy 4-12 0-0 9, Ludovic Dovonou 4-7 2-3 10, Joe Harvey 2-7 0-0 4, Eric Hammond 2-11 0-0 4, James Loe 0-7 0-0 0, Nikola Grbicic 0-1 0-0 0, Santwon Latunde 5-9 0-0 10. Totals: 28-69 2-4 59.

Allen County (76): Lloyd Phillips 5-9 1-2 12, Jackson Putnam 0-1 0-0 0, Tim Miser 1-3 0-0 2, Tyray Petty 2-7 4-4 9, Elias Yeadon 3-7 1-2 7, Perry Petty 8-11 4-5 23, Anthony Barnhart 2-7 2-4 6, William Slones 1-1 2-2 4, Trumaine Pearson 3-7 6-8 13. Totals: 25-53 20-27 76.

Three-pointers: Cowley 1-17 (Muncy 1-5, Harvey 0-1, Hammond 0-6, Loe 0-5), Allen County 6-15 (Phillips 1-3, Putnam 0-1, Miser 0-1, T. Petty 1-2, Yeadon 0-1, P. Petty 3-4, Barnhart 0-1, Pearson 0-2). Rebounds: Cowley 33 (Watts, Harvey, Latunde 7), Allen County 28 (P. Petty 8). Assists: Cowley 16 (Loe 5), Allen County 16 (Phillips, P. Petty, Barnhart 4). Turnovers: Cowley 19, Allen County 18. Total fouls: Cowley 24, Allen County 12. Fouled out: Loe. Technicals: Cowley bench.