Men's basketball falls late at Iowa Western

The Comets overcame two 10-point deficits but fell short of a complete comeback after a couple missed opportunities down the stretch of an 82-77 loss to Iowa Western on Saturday.

Latrel Davis scored 18 points, Keishaun Pendleton had 17 and Jailyn Spears added 12 for Western Iowa Tech.

Head coach Harvis "Coco" Cofield was proud of the Comets' overall play, and said the Comets are already a better team than they were when they lost to the Reivers 108-88 at home on January 6. 

"I think our guys are competing at a high level, I think we're getting better and some guys are really stepping up," Cofield said. "It was a good weekend. I think we're still working on things to get better. We just want to finish strong."

The Comets were down 51-41 and 65-55 before their leading scorer tied the game with a highlight-level play.

Down 75-72 with 2:16 to play, Davis received a pass from Spears in the left corner, drove down the baseline and drew a foul as he finished his two-handed dunk. The Comets bench rose out of their seats, pretending to hold each other back and dapping the tops of their heads as Davis strode to the foul line, where he completed the three-point play to tie the game. It was the first time WIT hadn't trailed since leading 39-38 for one possession two minutes into the second half.

The emphatic bucket was the final field goal of the game for the Comets. Spears hit both shots of a one-and-one to tie the game at 77-77 on WIT's next possession, but the Comets three final possessions resulted in a missed lay-up, a turnover, and a last-second 3-point attempt.  

"We are playing at a high level, we just need to focus on the little details and win those close ball games," Cofield said. "I thought it came down to the details of executing down the stretch."

Iowa Western's go-ahead basket came on a rare defensive miscue for WIT. As Ahmad Ingram fought through a screen to follow the Reivers' ball-handler, Davis switched off the screener, leaving Reivers guard Jadon Cool open to hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key. 

The Reivers made only two more threes than the Comets (5-for-22), but held a major advantage at the foul line, where they made more than twice as many free throws (33) than the Comets (16).

Ironically, Saturday's 16-for-18 (88.9%) performance from the line was Western Iowa Tech's best mark of the season.

"We have been really working on it in practice," Cofield said. "We do competition free throw shooting. They've really been buying into it. I'm always putting them in situations in practice where they got to make free throws under pressure. It's starting to translate over to the game, that's good to see."

While Davis is one of the team's most consistent sources of offense, WIT's scoring has come from a variety of players through January. Davis, Pendleton, Spears, Ingram, Ashton Pennamon, Zeb Svoboda and Bie Ruei have all scored at least 10 points in one or more games this month.

"We're starting to gel a little bit more on the offensive end now," Cofield said.

An increased emphasis on ball movement and shot selection could be leading to a more even distribution of scoring opportunities.

"We talk about good shot to a great shot. Not a me shot, a team shot in the flow of the offense," Cofield said. "They understand if I'm sacrificing a bad shot for a good shot or a great shot, that's better for the team."

Saturday was the fifth straight game of 12 or more points from Spears, who had only one such performance in his previous 14 games.

"He's one of those guys where he's really sneaky. You wouldn't notice him until the box score is out," Cofield said. "He's really smooth, really quick and knows how to get to his spots. You can't speed him up, he plays at the pace that he's very comfortable. And he's starting to make shots. I still want him to be a lot more aggressive for us driving to the basket. He's starting to make his free throws as well, his percentage is starting to go up."

Cofield added Spears' contributions have also increased behind the scenes.

"He's an awesome student, and now he's starting to take ownership, Cofield said. "He's a leader on the team, they do follow him."

The Comets host the Southwestern Spartans at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the Dunker Center. WIT will look to atone for a 75-66 loss to the Spartans on January 3, when a season-low 21-point second half allowed the Spartans to make a late comeback.

"They know it's one of the games where we had it," Cofield said. "Teams are going to make runs, momentum is going to change. But you got to finish the game no matter what the situation is. Don't think the game is already won when you still got minutes on the clock."