It was a tale of two halves Wednesday for Allen Community College.
The Red Devils were firing on all cylinders for the first 20 minutes against visiting Fort Scott. Led by guard Randy Crosby’s marksmanship from 3-point range, Allen went into the locker room ahead, 47-40.
But the momentum shifted in a big way after the break.
Allen’s shooting went ice cold as Fort Scott’s went white hot.
The Greyhounds took the lead for good with a 16-0 run midway through the second half and never looked back in an 86-79 victory.
The teams traded the lead frequently through the opening half before Allen’s shooting took over.
Crosby hit 4 of 6 from 3-point range, while his teammates went a combined 5 of 9 from downtown as the Red Devils took a seven-point lead.
The margin was at nine midway through the second half before things went south.
Fort Scott’s BJ Francis hit the tie-breaking 3-pointer to push the Greyhounds on top, 61-58. Davion Sargent followed with a long jumper and driving layup on FSCC’s next two possessions to extend Allen’s deficit to seven.
Crosby put an end to Allen’s scoring drought with another 3-pointer at the 9:25 mark, but Francis — who ended the game a perfect 4-for-4 from downtown — responded with another long-range bomb.
Allen’s Grayson Ryan drilled a trey with 6½ minutes remaining to pull Allen to within 70-68, but Fort Scott answered with an 8-2 run to take control for good.
Allen drew no closer than six points the rest of the way.
Shooting percentages reflected the game’s stark turnaround.
Allen shot at a 47% clip from the field in the first half, and 60% (9 of 15) from 3-point range. But those percentages dropped to 30% overall and 20% (3 of 15) from downtown in the second.
Conversely, Fort Scott shot 44% in the first half, but 67% from the field after intermission.
