After getting off to a hot start, Allen Community College’s women went cold in the second half to lose, 97-81, to Labette Community College.
“We did really well the first 15 minutes, then we just took lots of really quick shots,” coach Katie Mahoney said. “We also gave up a lot of layups and free throws on defense. The transition game and free throws killed us.”
The Red Devils got off to a quick 6-4 lead on a drive by Josie Reilly with 17:15 left to play. That quickly evaporated and the Cardinals held a 14-8 lead with 14 minutes left in the half.
That’s when Allen rallied.
Ashley Washington went on a quick 5-0 run by herself. She hit a jumper to tie the game at 16-16, then hit a 3-pointer to give ACC the 19-16 lead with 9:05 to go.
Three-point shooting helped the Red Devils extend the lead to double-digits in the first half. Erika Essman scorched the back of the net with a three to take a 26-17 lead with 7:05 left. Three minutes later, Ashley Sally connected on a 3-pointer giving Allen the 35-24 advantage.
The Cardinals stormed back before the half, going on a 10-2 run. Allen still led 37-34 at halftime.
The Red Devils were playing at a much quicker pace in the first half, beating the Cardinals back to the offensive zone for transition baskets.
In the second half, ACC tried the same tactic, but with mixed results. They weren’t getting shots to fall as often, shooting 38.6 percent in the second half compared to 41 percent in the first half.
“It’s nothing we really talked about, but we just felt like they weren’t getting back and set in their zone,” Mahoney said.
Labette had a 65-62 advantage with just over six minutes left in the game.
Daria Evans came up big, hitting a 3-pointer to tie the score.
But, giving up offensive rebounds and thus second chances, hurt the Red Devils. The Cardinals went on a 7-0 run to take a 72-65 lead with 4:35 left.
The lead only grew from there. Besides Essman hitting two 3-pointers in the final minutes, nothing else was falling in the basket.
Allen was led by Evans’ 17 points. Sally had the most complete game, scoring 15 points and securing 10 rebounds. Washington also scored 15 points. Essman scored 12, all coming from beyond the arc.
A myriad of Cardinals hurt the Red Devils. Morgan Harwood lit the net, scoring 25 points. She also corralled 17 rebounds — 10 of which were on the offensive end. Me’Shelle Parker also scored 25 points and grabbed nine boards.
Three other Cardinals scored in double digits. Kiera Tate scored 14 points, Holly Ullery scored 13 and Dominique Thomas added 12.
Rebounding and free throws were the biggest difference. Labette scored 26 points from the line (26-39). Allen shot 80 percent from the line, but didn’t get there as often (8-10). The Cardinals ended the game with 56 rebounds — 21 offensive — and Allen finished with 45 rebounds — 16 offensive.
“Rebounding killed us. We gave up way too many offensive rebounds,” Mahoney said. “We knew they were going to try to rebound and get to the basket. We didn’t stop the ball well, we didn’t rebound well and on offense we forced things.”
ACC (5-15) plays at Fort Scott at 2 p.m. Friday.
Poor shooting, offensive rebounds doom ACC women in second half
