The Tempe Buffaloes fought the good fight in their overtime contest against the Cortez Colts on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They took a 85-73 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Colts. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Several Buffaloes players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Ja'michael Keeton, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Keeton has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Nassir Cobbs, who scored 19 points.
Cortez was led to victory by Ulysses Espinoza and Devan Fowler. Espinoza scored 26 points along with five rebounds and four steals, while Fowler scored 40 points along with eight assists and two steals. That makes it three consecutive games in which Fowler has scored at least a third of Cortez's points. Another player making a difference was Tylin Hunter, who scored eight points along with nine rebounds and four steals.
Tempe has traveled a rocky road recently, as they've lost seven of their last nine games, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-16 record this season. As for Cortez, the victory (which was their fourth in a row) raised their record to 12-10.
Tempe won't have much time to rest: their next contest is against Coronado at 7:00 p.m. on January 26th. Coronado and Tempe are at an even 3-3 over their past six head-to-heads. As for Cortez, they won't have much time to rest: their next match is against Dysart at 7:00 p.m. on January 26th. Dysart has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 1,325 points over their last 18 contests.
