A valiant effort, in which Allen Community College’s two leading scorers spent extended time on the bench, almost paid off handsomely for the Red Devils Monday evening.
But a few missed free throws provided visiting Labette Community College the only opening it needed, as the Cardinals overcame a four-point deficit in regulation to tie the score at 63-63.
Then Labette’s Keshaun Hamilton drained a tie-breaking baseline jumper with less than 4 seconds left in overtime, giving the Cardinals a 73-71 lead.
The victory was not secured, however, until Allen’s Bryce Schippers narrowly missed a 3-point attempt from near mid court as time expired. The shot was on target, but inches short.
“I’m proud of our effort,” Red Devil coach Andy Shaw said. “We had several guys step up and make big plays for us. But they made some big shots at the end. It would have been a nice win. To come that close is hard to swallow.”
Allen kept pace with Labette despite playing most of the game without sophomore Cameron Blue (illness). Meanwhile, Andrew Rountree was saddled with early foul trouble.
Labette led 54-49 before Allen got hot from 3-point range. Schippers, DeAndrae Barnette and Ben Uno each connected over a 90-second span to give Allen a 58-54 lead with 4:42 left.
The Cardinals cut the deficit to two before Rountree connected on a driving layup with 2:36 left. Rountree was unable to hit a free throw that would have made it a three-point play, an ominous sign of things to come. The Red Devils missed on three other free throws in the game’s final minute.
Tray Fountain’s jumper re-established a 62-58 lead for the Red Devils with 2:08 left. Labette’s Stanley Melancon twice rebounded his own misses inside before connecting on a mid-range jumper, cutting the Allen lead to 62-60. Rountree hit the second of two free throws with 1:17 left, putting the Red Devils up three. Eddie Williams tied the score with a 3-pointer with 1:05 on the clock.
Both teams came up empty on their final possessions of regulation, sending the contest into overtime.
Labette edged ahead 68-65 before Fountain hit two free throws, then Alex Keiswetter’s putback with 92 seconds left in the extra frame put the Red Devils back on top.
The Cardinals went 3 of 4 from the line on their next two possessions, giving Labette a 71-69 lead. Fountain’s basket with 13 seconds left tied the score, leading to Hamilton’s tie-breaker.
“Alex Keiswetter had a nice game for us, and DeAndrae hit some big shots early,” Shaw said.
The opening half featured 11 lead changes and five ties before Schippers hit a 3-pointer to give Allen a 26-23 lead. Allen led by as many as seven early in the second half. Labette held a six-point lead in the first half.
“Their size really hurt us in the first half,” Shaw said. “They were able to get several second-chance points. We did a better job of boxing out in the second half.”
Barnette led Allen with 19 points and three steals. Rountree added 13 points before fouling out in overtime. Fountain had 12 points with four assists. Keiswetter chipped in with eight points and seven rebounds.
Melancon scored 21 to pace Labette. Hamilton added 16 and Williams 14.
The Red Devils (6-21 overall, 2-13 in Region VI standings) will host Kansas City, Kan., Wednesday for Sophomore Night.
Labette (27-36-10—73)
Allen (31-32-8—71)
Labette (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Johnson 3-1-1-7, Luerman 0-0-1-0, Williams 1/2-6-3-14, Hamilton 5-6-1-16, Melancon 10-1-1-21, Elechi 1-2-4-4, Adams 2-2-4-6, Gantt 1-3-1-5, Pledger 0-0-1-0. TOTALS: 23/2-21-17-73.
Allen (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Rountree 5-3-5-13, Robers 2-2-1-6, Fountain 4-4-4-12, Schippers 0/2-0-3-6, Uno 2/1-0-1-7, Keiswetter 3-2-4-8, Barnette 2/5-0-2-19, Walter 0-0-4-0. TOTALS: 18/8-11-24-71.
Win not in cards for Allen men
