Sometimes statistics only tell part of the story.
Allen Community College’s offense was a juggernaut at times in the first half. The Red Devils shot 53% from the field, while sophomore behemoth Amadou “Shaq” Traore had 17 points and 11 rebounds before the break.
Problem was, the Red Devils still trailed by 19.
The visiting Cowley Tigers, who average 107 points a contest, erupted for 61 points before halftime and kept its advantage down the stretch for a 112-90 victory.
The loss drops ACC to 6-14 as the Red Devils enter the home stretch of the regular season. Allen is slated to visit Butler County Saturday and host Cloud County Monday for Sophomore Night.
“For a lot of the game, we executed our game plan,” Allen head coach Andy Shaw said. “We tried to go four corners to spread them out and take some of their trapping ability away.
“It worked at times, and at times they got us.”
Traore’s slam dunk at the 6:15 mark of the first half knotted the score at 31-31 apiece.
“The next thing you know, we’re down 20,” Shaw said.
Officially, it was 19 as Cowley’s shooters hit nine 3-pointers before halftime, leading 61-42.
“That’s their game plan,” Shaw said. “That’s what they do. They just wear you down over a 40-minute span. They play the same way, whether they’re up 40 or down. And they’re usually not down very much. It just wears on you and wears on you.”
The frenetic pace continued after halftime. Reserve Tyren Shelley hit a 3-pointer just before Shaikim Jenks did the same to pull ACC to within 87-74 with 7:15 left in the game.
But that was as close as Allen would get.
“We’d get some momentum there, but then they’d square quickly and get it back up to 20,” Shaw noted.
The Red Devils lost the services of freshman reserve Cory Reynolds, who exited with a lower leg injury. Reynolds had to be helped from the floor and was on crutches at the end of the game.
“Our thoughts are with him,” Shaw said. “We hope to get a diagnosis today.”
Traore wound up with 23 points and 14 boards, but also was whistled for a technical foul midway through the second half after slamming the ball to the floor in a bit of frustration. It was one of three technicals called on ACC, including one on Shaw for arguing what he thought should have been a foul against Cowley.
