January 10, 2008

No. 17-ranked Tigers pull out overtime win

Struggling to find any rhythm offensively for most of Wednesday night’s game at Allen County, the No. 17-ranked Cowley College men’s basketball team erupted for 38 points over the game’s final 12 minutes of play as they left Iola with a 79-70 overtime win.

The Tigers shot just 24 percent in the first half and trailed 28-25 at halftime. Trailing 45-41, Cowley sophomore Montrell McDonald converted a three-point play with 7:10 remaining to start the Tigers’ comeback.

Cowley would go on to lead 58-53 with three minutes left before the Red Devils rallied to force overtime. A goaltending call on a shot by Allen County’s William Sloanes tied the game at 61-61 with 13.2 seconds left. The Tigers had a chance to win it in regulation but Preston Brown’s shot at the buzzer was no good.

Cowley would take control in the extra period. Leading 71-68, Eric McKinney’s put back with 1:05 remaining, keyed a 6-0 run that helped put the game away. The Tigers’ outscored Allen County 18-9 in overtime.

Cowley had three players foul out, while several other players played through minor injuries.

“We hung in there, fought hard, had a lot of things go against us and could have folded but we didn’t,” Cowley head coach Steve Eck said.

Five sophomores combined to score 71 of the Tigers’ 79 points in the win. Chris Rhymes led the way with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while Eric McKinney (15 points, 11 rebounds) and McDonald (14 points, 14 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles. Reggie Cook and Preston Brown chipped in with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

After shooting just 24 percent in the first half, Cowley shot 51 percent over the game’s final 25 minutes of play. The victory improves the Tigers’ record to 13-1 overall and 2-0 in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division.

Allen County shot just 37.1 percent for the game as Cowley has held all 14 of its opponents to less than 40 percent shooting.

The tandem of Tyray Petty and Perry Petty combined to make just 12-of-37 shots from the floor for the Red Devils, while committing 13 turnovers. The loss drops Allen County’s record to 7-7 overall and 0-2 in the Jayhawk East.

Cowley will now prepare for a huge game on Saturday as they will host six-time defending conference champion Coffeyville (11-3 overall, 2-0 Jayhawk East) at 7 p.m.
“We need to get rested and be at full strength against Coffeyville,” Eck said. “Coffeyville’s a good team, but we aren’t going to back down from anybody.”

Members of Cowley College’s 1997 and 1998 baseball teams, which captured back-to-back Junior College World Series titles, will be introduced at halftime of the game vs. Coffeyville.

Box score:
Cowley (79): Preston Brown 5-13 0-0 10, Reggie Cook 3-10 3-4 11, Montrell McDonald 5-14 3-3 14, Jack Crowder 1-6 4-4 6, Jeremy McCarty 0-1 0-1 0, Kyle Hammerschmidt 0-0 2-2 2, Chris Rhymes 8-11 5-7 21, Zach Miller 0-2 0-0 0, Eric McKinney 7-19 1-4 15, Marcus Butler 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 29-76 18-25 79.

Allen County (70): Matt Nelson 0-4 2-2 2, William Sloanes 4-5 0-0 8, Tim Miser 4-7 4-6 15, Tyray Petty 4-17 2-2 11, Perry Petty 8-20 3-10 22, Jackson Putman 0-1 0-0 0, Avery Braggs 0-1 0-0 0, Zach Scrivner 0-0 0-0 0, Uros Komadinic 3-7 5-6 12. Totals: 23-62 16-26 70.

Three-pointers: Cowley 3-11 (Brown 0-2, Cook 2-6, McDonald 1-1, Crowder 0-1, Miller 0-1), Allen 8-21 (Miser 3-4, T. Petty 1-6, P. Petty 3-7, Putman 0-1, Komadinic 1-3). Rebounds: Cowley 48 (McDonald 14), Allen 38 (Komadinic, Sloanes 8). Assists: Cowley 19 (Rhymes), Allen 13 (Miser, T. Petty 3). Turnovers: Cowley 22, Allen 31. Total fouls: Cowley 23, Allen 19. Fouled out: Brown, McDonald, McKinney. Technicals: none.