ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – How's that for running through the jungle?
Griffon Men's Basketball overcame a 13-point deficit to deny Pittsburg State of a victory, defeating the Gorillas on a last-second throw down from
Taye Fields on Thursday night at John Lance Arena.
The trip to Fields' go-ahead dunk took time, however. The Griffons were down to the Gorillas, 60-51, with 2:46 left to play when
Will Eames sank a three cut into the deficit.
Reese Glover followed suit just moments later with a triple of his own, and Dixon depleted Pitt of its lead with his own trifecta to tie the game at 60-60.
R.J. Forney Jr. of Pitt State answered right back with a three of his own, but Fields cut the deficit to one with a layup on the other end. Fields later found himself at the free-throw line with a chance to take the lead with 14 seconds left to play in regulation. As soon he sank both of them, Pitt put MWSU behind with a would-be-go-ahead jumpshot by Quentin Hardrict Jr. with six seconds left on the clock.
Down by one at 65-64, the Griffons (4-2, 1-0 MIAA) stayed with a lineup they haven't used all season, with Fields,
Reed Kemp. Dixon, Glover and Eames out on the court. Head Coach
Will Martin called a timeout after Hardrict's bucket to draw up the Griffons' eventual go-ahead play to give them their fourth-straight MIAA-opener win and third consecutive win this season.
Fields finished the night with a season-high 20 points and 12 rebounds, tallying his first double-double of the season. Eames complemented his Griffon comrade with 13 points and seven rebounds, moving into fifth all-time in program history with 690 careerr boards.
NOTABLES
- The Griffons trailed by 13 points with 2:41 left to play in the first half. They only trailed by five at halftime.
- Dixon has scored in double-figures each game this season.
- Glover made 3-of-5 from 3-point range, moving him to 211 in his career and seven away from passing Heath Dudley for second all-time in program history.
UP NEXT
Missouri Western travels further down south to face Missouri Southern (4-3, 0-1 MIAA) on 3:30 p.m. in Joplin, Missouri. The Lions are coming off a 72-45 loss against No. 1 Northwest Missouri on Thursday night at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.
