Allen basketball teams victorious going into break

Both Allen Community College’s men and women basketball teams went into Thanksgiving break with a win on Tuesday night. The usually ruckus student body section was empty because of the holiday break. No classes were held this week.
The Red Devil women started off the night with a 91-84 win against Cottey College.
Much of the game stayed in Allen’s favor, with the team leading 41-29 at halftime. The second half started well for the Red Devils, which built a 20-point cushion.
However, with 2:45 left to play, Cottey edged their way back into a game with a 3-pointer. Allen led 81-75 and the Comets’ comeback edged closer.
ACC’s Daria Evans answered with a drive through the lane for the lay-in and a 83-75 lead. But, the Comets went on a 5-point run to close the gap to 83-80 with 1:50 left.
With 31 seconds left, the Comets scored underneath the basket to pull within two points at 86-84. Allen made the necessary free throws when Cottey started fouling to stop the clock.
Down the stretch, Allen’s Josie Reilly made 4 of 4 free throws in the final three minutes. Ashley Washington made 3 of 4 free throws and Evans made 1 of 2 in those final minutes.
“We haven’t really been in that situation all year, with having a lead,” coach Katie Mahoney said. “It was a good experience for us and we hit free throws and that’s big. We made free throws that led us to the win.”
As a team, the Red Devils were 25 of 31 from the charity line for 80.6 percent. Allen made 23 of 28 free throws in the second half.
Their shooting didn’t end at the free throw line. Overall, Allen shot 30 of 68 for 44.1 percent from the field. The Comets shot 43.8 percent for the game. This came down to offense and Allen’s was more consistent.
Cottey outscored the Red Devils 55-50 in the second half, but the 12 point halftime lead was too much to overcome.
Four Allen players ended the night with double-digits. Evans led the team with 22 points and five assists. Haley Wilson scored 18 points, grabbed three rebounds and had two assists. Rachael Bruce scored 13 points and swiped seven rebounds. Emily Azubell had 11 points and five rebounds.
Allen (2-10) plays at Pratt on Monday at 6 p.m.
“Hopefully this good feeling going into Thanksgiving will come back for us, ready to go,” Mahoney said. “We’ll be back practicing, we should be good to go. I think we have four more games until Christmas, so I hope we can finish the semester strong.”

ALLEN’S MEN followed the women’s successful night with a 96-74 victory over Tabor JV.
The game wasn’t ever close. The first half started with a 9-0 run by Allen that led to a 46-22 lead into halftime.
“We came out early and were able to build a big lead, which is what you want to do,” coach Andy Shaw said. “We were up 24 points at halftime , which is a good lead.”
The second half didn’t go as well as the first half, with Tabor outscoring Allen 55-50. The closest the score would get was 14 points, but the Red Devils wouldn’t give up the double-digit lead.
Shaw said he told his guys not to relax, but they did. It also didn’t help that Tabor didn’t back down.
“They shot it a lot better in the second half and were able to close the gap,” Shaw said. “We did what we needed to do. The numbers aren’t great, but we got the win.”
To Allen’s credit they finished the game with a 22-point lead and didn’t let the Bluejays complete a comeback. Allen shot 53.4 percent from the field to Tabor’s 42.6 percent.
The Red Devils were led by Courtney Stockard, who is as consistent as they come. He scored a team-high 20 points and had 10 rebounds for a double-double. His eight assists were two shy of giving him a triple-double. Stockard was a perfect 8 of 8 from the field, making all four of his 3-pointers. His only miss was a free throw.
Jermaine Long added 11 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists. John Cornett scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds. Jordan Nanton scored 15 points. Josh Sweet scored six points and had seven assists.
Allen (6-5) travels to Pratt on Monday for an 8 p.m. game.
“That will be a good game and a close one,” Shaw said. “We beat them at home, so they’re going to want revenge on their mind. We’re going to have to come ready to play and give a better effort than we did tonight.”
Allen beat Pratt 59-57 for their first win of the season on a shot in the final seconds by Stockard.