ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — Five Griffons put up double-digit points as Griffon Men's Basketball defeated the Pittsburg State Gorillas 85-75 at home Thursday at the MWSU Fieldhouse.

The Griffons (6-0, 1-0 MIAA) had five players score in double figures, led by JaRon Thames, who tied a season-high with 21 points and snagged two steals. With his effort, Thames scored his 1,000th point at MWSU, becoming the 18th player in program history to do so.

Kiani Saxon added 15 points and a season-high two blocks, and Reese Glover helped out with a season-high 15 points from the bench. With the win, MWSU is 6-0 for the first time since 2005.

The Missouri Western State offense was strong from beyond the arc, making eight threes on 23 attempts. Glover hit four treys for the Griffons in the contest.

Missouri Western forced 15 Pittsburg State (2-3, 0-1 MIAA) turnovers while committing 11 themselves in Thursday's game. The Griffons turned those takeaways into 22 points on the offensive end of the floor. Taye Fields led the way individually with three steals.

HOW IT HAPPENED
After jumping out to a 15-10 advantage, MWSU went on a 6-0 run with 11:33 left in the first half to increase its lead to 21-10. The Griffons then added six points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 40-23 advantage. Western did most of its first-half damage in the paint, scoring 22 of its 40 points close to the basket.

Western its lead intact before going on a 5-0 run, finished off by Glover's three, to grow the lead to 76-64 with 1:36 to go in the contest. The Gorillas narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Griffons still cruised the rest of the way for the 85-75 win. The Griffs got a boost from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for 12 of its 45 total points.

GAME NOTES

• Western found success from beyond the arc, knocking down eight treys in the game.
• The Griffs never trailed on the way to an 85-75 victory.
• Five MWSU players scored 10 or more points.
• The Griffon defense forced 15 turnovers.
• Thames has scored 16 or more points in all six games this season.
• This is MWSU's first 6-0 start since 2005.

UP NEXT
The Griffons take on Missouri Southern (2-5, 0-1 MIAA) Saturday at 5:30 p.m. back inside the MWSU Fieldhouse. The Lions lost 78-74 to No. 15-ranked Northwest Missouri State on Thursday night in Maryville, Missouri.

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