Tigers improve to 15-2 in the conference with a 94-81 win at Fort Hays Tech

Making the long road trip to Goodland, KS, the No. 9-ranked Cowley College men's basketball team forced 23 turnovers on its way to a 94-81 win over the Fort Hays Tech Tigers on Wednesday.

"We found a way to leave Goodland with a win," Cowley head coach Donnie Jackson said. "It's not the easiest road trip, so credit to the guys."

The victory helps Cowley (20-3) achieve 20 wins for the second straight season and open a one-game lead over second-place Coffeyville (13-2) with a record of 15-2 in the Jayhawk Conference.

On Wednesday, Cowley led 24-19 before a 13-2 run helped its lead grow to 37-21. Cowley would go into halftime with a 44-30 lead and maintained a double-digit advantage throughout the second half of the 13-point win.

Sophomore Avante Nichols scored 11 of his 17 points in the first half, and freshman Kyden Thompson scored 10 of his 12 points before halftime.

Marcus Whitlock Jr. and Dallas Whitney then took over in the second half with Whitlock scoring 14 of his team-high 19 points after intermission and Whitney scoring 15 of his 18 points over the final 20 minutes of play.

"We had overall good balance offensively and shared the ball well," Jackson said.

Marcus Zeigler (11 points) and Emarquis Jones (10 points, eight rebounds, five assists) helped Cowley have a season-high six players score in double figures.

Kalik Sharpe came off the bench to lead Fort Hays Tech with a game-high 23 points.

Cowley will host Colby on Saturday at 3 p.m. Colby has won two games in a row to improve its record to 13-10 overall and 8-9 in the conference.

"We need to shift our focus to Colby," Jackson said. "They have a really good team. We will need to be ready."