As far as non-conference action goes, it will be tough to top the week Allen Community College’s women are enjoying.
Fresh off a hard-fought victory against Northeastern Oklahoma A&M over the weekend, the Red Devils had an even tougher test at home Wednesday, with the nation’s 11th-ranked North Central Missouri Pirates coming to town.
And Wednesday’s showdown had a little bit of everything: a dominating start from Allen, a ferocious second-half rally from North Central Missouri, and finally a closing kick from the Red Devils that earned the team a 74-70 victory.
The win keeps Allen’s record spotless at 10-0 with one more game remaining before Christmas break, a contest Friday evening at Northern Oklahoma College-Enid.
“If you would have told me at the beginning of the season we’d be where we are — knowing that we had so many things we needed to learn as a club — I would have said you’re crazy,” Crane said. “But here we are.”
Allen’s rebuild this season features a roster retaining only one player from last season’s 22-win squad, which meant finding the right fit for a crop of talented, but still quite raw, players.
The first half Wednesday showed just how potent Allen can be.
The Red Devils raced out to a 13-6 lead minutes into the contest as they effectively stymied North Central Missouri inside and out. Tawhirikura Doyle’s 3-pointer near the end of the first quarter pushed the Red Devils ahead, 25-14.
The Pirates showed a little spark to start the second quarter, briefly slicing the gap to five points before Allen pulled away once again. Juana Rojas and Audrey Peek both connected from 3-point range, Aaliyah Brown scored from inside and then Peek scored again to push the lead to 45-23. Mafalda Chambel’s steal and layup late in the half pushed Allen’s advantage to 24, 47-23.
Nikki Gear opened the second half with another trey, making it 52-27, and perhaps leading some to believe victory was inevitable.
It was anything but.
North Central Missouri cranked up its defensive pressure, and Allen’s youngsters grew tentative, Crane said.
“We played scared in the second half,” she said. “We didn’t want to lose it, and it showed.”
The Pirates rattled off nine straight points, prompting Crane to call a timeout to settle the troops.
It didn’t do much to slow North Central Missouri’s momentum however. The Pirates ended the third quarter with a steal and layup to pare Allen’s lead to 58-45, part of a larger 20-3 run, capped by Glady Brown’s driving layup to knot the score at 61-61 with 4:40 left in the game.
