HALSTEAD, Kan. — For the first time since 2024, the Cheney Cardinals are champions of the Adolph Rupp Invitational.
Cheney (10-6) needed to hold off Andale, 56-54, in overtime on Friday to extend its winning streak to five, while snapping Andale’s four-game winning streak.
Andale used a 9-0 run in the first to lead 9-2 and eventually a 14-13 lead heading into the second quarter. Cheney outscored Andale, 8-4, in the second quarter, taking a 21-18 lead at halftime thanks to a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Quaid Thomas. The Cardinals managed to keep the lead heading into the fourth quarter, 33-30. After trailing by as many as eight in the fourth at 40-32, Andale outscored the Cardinals, 14-6, forcing overtime thanks to a floater by Jack Horsch with 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime.
In the extra session, it was all Cardinals and Thomas. Thomas scored eight of the Cardinals’ 10 points in overtime, finishing with a game-high 28 points. Andale was able to cut it to one, 50-49, but could not gain the lead.
Andale (9-3) was led by Horsch’s 15 points, while Caden Fowler added 10 points and 13 rebounds. Horsch and Fowler were named to the All-Tournament team as well as Haven’s Brogan Wray and Garden Plain’s Cooper Eck. Cheney was represented by Ayden Koehn and Thomas, with Thomas being named the tournament’s most valuable player. Andale’s Hunter Grimes was named the 3-point shooting champion, and Cheney’s Reece Tolar won the free-throw shooting contest.
Andale will be back in action on Tuesday at Augusta, while Cheney is off until February 3 when it hosts Garden Plain.
