Tigers remain unbeaten at home with a 91-68 victory over Seward

Playing in front of a large crowd of former Tiger greats, the No. 12-ranked Cowley College men's basketball team remained in a tie for first place in the Jayhawk Conference with a dominating 91-68 over Seward County Saturday afternoon inside W.S. Scott Auditorium.

With the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2024 honored prior to tipoff, Cowley gave its fans lots to cheer about as they improved its record to 10-0 at home.

On Saturday, Cowley raced out to a 15-2 lead, extended its lead to 28-8 midway through the first half, and took a commanding 49-20 lead into halftime. The Tigers shot 57.7 percent from the floor in the opening half while holding Seward to 16.1 percent on 5-of-31 shooting.

"We challenged the guys to bring great energy," Cowley head coach Donnie Jackson said. "With it being Hall of Fame weekend, there is always someone there to watch you for the first time. We told them to leave an impression with how hard you play, and they did."

Leading 63-30, Cowley had its lead cut to 70-49 after Seward used a 19-7 run. However, the Tigers would score the following seven points and cruised to the 23-point win.

Cowley is now 18-2 overall and tied with Barton with a record of 13-1 in the Jayhawk Conference. Seward is now 6-14 overall and 4-10 in the conference.

The Tigers had nine players score in the win and were led by sophomore Arzhonte Dallas' 21 points. Corey Thomas added his third straight double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Jeff Nwankwo nearly recorded a triple-double with 15 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Freshmen Leslie Owens and Marcus Zeigler added 12 points apiece as the Tigers had five players score in double figures.

"I thought we shared the ball well, and everyone got involved," Jackson said. "We need to keep doing that."

Cowley shot 54.9 percent in the victory, while going 9-of-17 from three-point range and 26-of-32 at the foul line.

Jaden Martin came off the bench to lead Seward with 17 points in the loss.

The Tigers will play at rival Coffeyville Community College Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Coffeyville is and uncharacteristic 9-11 overall and 5-9 in the conference. Still, Jackson and his team know how difficult traditionally it has been to win at Coffeyville.

"Coffeyville is such a tough place to play; it will be loud and rowdy," Jackson said. "They are well-coached and will be ready to compete. We need to have two great days of practice to give ourselves any opportunity to win."

Box score:

Seward (68): Dave Olaniyi 3-13 4-6 10, Carson Bennett 2-8 0-0 6, Amir Whitlock 3-10 0-0 8, Blessin Kimble 6-12 2-3 14, Lovasoa Andriatsarafara 3-7 0-0 6, David Petit 0-0 0-0 0, Jaden Martin 4-7 9-9 17, Kobe McGowan 0-0 0-0 0, Ryle Riddlespurger 1-6 1-2 4, Xavier Alexander 0-1 0-0 0, Nathan Jones 1-5 1-2 3. Totals: 23-69 17-22 68.

Cowley (91): Jeff Nwankwo 5-7 4-5 15, Arzhonte Dallas 4-8 9-9 21, Damare Smith 2-7 2-2 7, Leslie Owens 5-7 0-0 12, Corey Thomas 3-5 4-6 11, Shamarrie Hugie 4-9 0-0 8, Ajai Flagg 1-1 1-2 3, Avante Nichols 1-1 0-0 2, Marcus Zeigler 3-6 4-6 12, Faustin Phanor 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 28-51 26-32 91.

Three-pointers: Seward 5-23 (Whitlock 2-5, Bennett 2-6, Riddlespurger 1-6, Martin 0-2, Jones 0-2, Alexander 0-1, Olaniyi 0-1), Cowley 9-17 (Dallas 4-7, Zeigler 2-2, Smith 1-5, Nwankwo 1-2, Thomas 1-1). Rebounds: Seward 31 (Kimble 9), Cowley 35 (Thomas 10). Assists: Seward 5 (Two players with 2), Cowley 15 (Nwankwo 7). Turnovers: Seward 10, Cowley 20. Total fouls: Seward 22, Cowley 19. Fouled out: none. Technicals: none.