KANSAS CITY, KAN. — The Allen Red Devils’ season came to an end after falling in the Plains District championship against Fort Scott, 63-62.
Allen came within one possession of a tournament championship after battling the Fort Scott Greyhounds for 40 minutes but could not hold on for the win.
Allen coach Patrick Nee saw nothing but positives from the effort.
“I’m very excited about the program and where we’re headed,” Nee said. “We have a lot of returning players and the future is very bright for our program.”
Down 58-51 in the final minutes of Saturday’s championship, Allen freshmen guard Clyde Davis Jr., guard Moses Stephenson and Sheen Saunders willed the Red Devils back into contention with a pair of field goals and a dunk from Sheen. A drive in the final second by Davis pulled Allen within one point. But time was not on their side, with the clock running out before they could regain the ball.
The Greyhounds took the title and an automatic berth in the NJCAA national tournament.
Sophomore Jayson Demcher ended his career at Allen with a team-leading 23 points, tying Stephenson. Demcher was also second in rebounds with five boards. Davis Jr. had 14 points with four boards. Freshman guard Nyjah Noyes came off the bench for 12 points and four boards. Saunders had a team-leading six rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
The loss was a shock for Allen, who hoped to get one more crack at undefeated Johnson County before Fort Scott pulled off an upset to get into the championship game. The Red Devils came into the contest confident, which may have seemed misplaced after falling to the Greyhounds on two occasions.
In Friday’s district semifinal, Allen surged past archrival Neosho 83-77.
The Red Devils let their defense do most of the heavy lifting. Still neck-and-neck in the second half, a putback from freshman forward William Jordan II, Stephenson and Noyes put Allen back in the driver’s seat. Shots by freshman guard Logan Shockley, Davis Jr. and Stephenson allowed them to pull away for their final win of the season.
With Saturday’s loss, the Red Devils ended the season 18-12 and finished second in the Jayhawk Conference standings at 7-5. They will either graduate or transfer Demcher, sophomore guard Jackson Langford, as well as sophomore forwards James Mallory and Imadeddine Chraibi. Despite having a few holes to fill, Coach Nee is confident moving forward and hitting the road to find next year’s contributing freshmen.
“Getting on the road and recruiting is the next step, and making sure our current freshmen continue to get stronger and better for next year,” Nee said.
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