The Allen Community College men’s basketball team prides itself on being a very efficient offensive team, but you wouldn’t know that based on watching the first half of Wednesday’s 73-63 loss to Colby Community College.
“We just came out flat and stagnant,” Allen coach Andy Shaw said. “I think we just looked slow… We didn’t have our normal enthusiasm and intensity on either end of the floor… We weren’t tough enough to finish through somebody in the first half and by the time we decided to start playing, it was just too late.”
The Red Devils were held to 22 points in the first 20 minutes and had just as many turnovers — nine — as they had made shots.
“We turned the ball over too much with careless turnovers,” Shaw said. “It was just bad. There were turnovers that we haven’t been doing all year… We didn’t have what I thought we would have after winning our last three.”
Allen point guard E.J. Garnes was the only player on the team with more than one basket in the first half — he had three.
Despite all that, the Red Devils were still hanging around at halftime with the Trojans also struggling to put the ball in the net — albeit not as mightily as Allen was struggling. Colby led 32-22 at halftime.
In the second half, sophomore DaRon Mims put the Red Devils on his back and almost single-handedly got the Red Devils back to a level of respectability.
“(DaRon) responded,” Shaw said. “I challenged the guys at halftime to get where you want to get and he did that right away.”
Mims score 12 of the team’s first 14 points of the second half as the Red Devils clawed back within 40-38.
The Colby lead was at 46-43 when the Trojans grabbed control of the game with a 8-0 run to stretch the margin to 11 points midway through the second half.
The Red Devils got back with five points with baskets from Mims, Quentin Blaue and Shon Sanders.
After Colby stretched the lead back to nine points, Mims connected on an ‘and-one’ play and a three pointer to get Allen back with three points with under five minutes left.
An Ithello Cross dunk got the Red Devils within two points, but then Allen’s offense went silent again for the games final three minutes.
Colby’s Caleal Walker finished the game with six straight points and all Allen mustered were a pair of Garnes free throws and fell 73-63.
Mims led the team with 23 points while Garnes was the only other Allen player in double digits with 12 points.
“We were right in it, but that slow start just killed us,” Shaw said. “We just weren’t good enough,”
UP NEXT
Allen will hit the road on Saturday when they make a trip to Garden City Community College for a 8 p.m., game.
They will return home next Wednesday to play Butler Community College.
