Cowley suffers heartbreaking 105-104 loss to Butler in District Semifinal

"This was a super, high-level game that both teams had scouted well," Cowley head coach Donnie Jackson said. "Unfortunately, the three-ball is what won it for them at the end."

Butler (24-9), led by former assistant coach Eric Nitsche, went 3-0 against the Tigers this season as they advance to the NJCAA Division 1 National Tournament March 21-28 in Hutchinson, KS.

"We put ourselves in a position to win, but Kirkwood stepped up and hit a big shot when it mattered," Jackson said.

Friday's first half was back and forth with seven ties and seven lead changes before the Tigers went into halftime with a 48-42 lead thanks to 17 points from freshman Roman Miller.

Butler would storm out of the halftime intermission on a 12-3 run to lead 54-51 following a basket by Tim Walker II, and led by as many as seven (90-83) after another basket by Walker with 5:40 left to play.

Cowley would rally to lead 100-97 following a basket by freshman Marcus Smith with 38 seconds remaining.

After the teams traded a pair of free throws, Butler's Devin Kerr's three-pointer tied the game at 102-102 with 15 seconds left.

However, Butler fouled CJ Majors in the backcourt, sending the sophomore to the free-throw line with eight seconds remaining. Majors hit both foul shots, putting Cowley in front 104-102. The Grizzlies then quickly inbounded the ball to Kirkwood, who raced the ball downcourt and hit the step-back three-pointer off the glass to put Butler in front 105-104.

The Tigers' final attempt from beyond half court was off the mark as the buzzer sounded, sending Cowley home and Butler onto the District title game.

Miller led all scorers with 31 points on 13-of-15 shooting from the floor.

"That was one of the more efficient games I have seen," Jackson said. "I had a gut feeling he would play well and inserted him in the starting lineup, and he proved it was a good decision."

Cowley shot 61.9 percent from the floor, with its starting five combining to make 31-of-40 field goal attempts.

Despite shooting only 44 percent, the Grizzlies made up for it by making 11 more three-pointers (14-3) than the Tigers. Kirkwood led the way by going 5-of-7 from three-point range and finished with 26 points.

Cowley will say goodbye to sophomores CJ Majors and honorable mention all-conference performers Kyden Thompson and Leslie Owens Jr. The trio combined for 50 wins, a conference title, a district title, and a spot in the 2024-2025 Elite Eight at the National Tournament. Majors had 13 points and six rebounds in his final game, Owens added 16, and Thompson finished with a team-high five assists.

"It will be difficult to replace how hard those three guys play," Jackson said. "They bleed Black and Orange and will definitely be missed."

The Tigers have an opportunity to return a strong core of players from this year's team. Marcus Smith (15.7 points), Roman Miller (14.9 points), Chase Robinson (7.4 points), Xavier Vickerstaff (7.4 points), and LJ Britt are among the many freshmen who gained valuable experience during the 2025-2026 season.

"Some of those guys may get (NCAA) Division 1 scholarships, but I do think we can have a nice nucleus back," Jackson said. "The Jayhawk Conference is tough, you have to bring it every night, and I think our guys are starting to get that toward the end of the year, and I hope it carries over to next season. I am excited about the future."

The box score can be found at: http://cowleytigers.com/sports/mbkb/2025-26/boxscores/20260313_fznz.xml.