Two weeks after losing on the road to Butler County Community College by 23 points, Allen Community College looked to have reversed its fortunes.
In opening the second half with a 22-9 run, the Red Devils were downright dominant on defense, harassing Butler shooters and snaring rebounds against the taller Grizzlies front line.
“Defensively, we were very good for about 16 minutes, and that fed our offense,” Red Devil head coach Andy Shaw said.
The momentum changed down the stretch.
Shots that had been falling earlier in the half suddenly couldn’t find their mark.
“Butler made the plays down the stretch that we couldn’t,” Shaw said.
The Grizzlies closed Tuesday’s contest with a 16-5 run, taking the lead for good with 2:26 left in regulation of a 71-60 victory.
The loss — Allen’s fourth in a row — drops the Red Devils to 2-6 on the season.
“We had this game, and we gave it back to them,” Shaw said.
The Red Devils also were cold at the start. They were scoreless 5 1/2 minutes and trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half.
Allen emerged from the locker room with an invigorated defensive effort, holding Butler without a field goal for nearly five minutes.
Andrew Rountree’s 3-point play with 17:19 left closed the gap to 36-32.
Butler County’s Eric Watson and Allen’s Bryce Schippers traded 3-point baskets, then Tray Fountain banked in a jumper for the Red Devils to cut Butler’s lead to 41-38.
Ricky Roberts pulled Allen even at 41 apiece with a 3-pointer at the 11:45 mark. Schippers followed a Butler turnover with a 3-pointer to give the Red Devils their first lead, while a foul on the Grizzlies underneath the basket allowed Allen to retain possession. Rountree’s emphatic slam dunk on the inbounds pass suddenly put Allen on top 46-41.
Fountain scored again at the 6:02 mark to maintain the five-point lead, 55-50. Butler closed the gap to 55-54 before Alex Keiswetter scored on a nifty pass by Barnett to give Allen a three-point cushion at the 3:33 mark.
But five consecutive empty possessions for the Red Devils allowed Butler to retake the lead. Jordan Madrid-Andrews scored on a layup for Butler before Shomari Triggs went 3 of 4 from the line to put the Grizzlies on top 59-57.
Watson scored again, as did Sean Osler on a layup with 1:10 left in the game to give Butler a 63-57 lead.
Butler shot an astounding 42 free throws, compared to 12 for Allen.
“We only gave up eight field goals in the second half, but we put them on the line 31 times,” Shaw said. “We’ve got to be smarter than that.”
Roberts led Allen with 13 points, followed by Barnette with 10. Rountree added nine points and 10 boards. Schippers also scored nine points. Keiswetter had seven points and 11 rebounds. Fountain dished out five assists. Barnette had two steals.
The Red Devils without the services of leading scorer and rebounder Cameron Blue for the second consecutive game.
“We’re optimistic he can play again after Thanksgiving,” Shaw said.
Watson paced the Grizzlies with 17 points. Madrid-Andrews added 13.
Allen resumes play Nov. 28 at home against North Central Missouri.
Butler County (32-29—71)
Allen (22-38—60)
Butler Co. (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Bradshaw 0-0-1-0, Briggs 2-5-2-9, Williams 0-0-1-0, Richardson 3-2-4-8, Triggs 0-6-0-6, Pruitt 3-1-0-7, Watson 4/2-3-1-17, Fitzgerald 0-0-1-0, Osler 2-4-2-8, Madrid-Andrews 4-5-3-13, Schraeder 1-1-4-3. TOTALS: 19/2-27-19-71.
Allen (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Roberts 4/1-2-4-13, Fountain 4-0-4-8, Schippers 0/3-0-4-9, Uno 0/1-0-2-3, Keiswetter 3-0-4-6, Barnett 2/2-0-5-10, Rountree 3-3-3-9, Walter 1-0-3-2. TOTALS: 17/7-5-29-60.
Grizzlies pull away late
