ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — Highlighted by Reese Glover notching 1,000 career points, Griffon Men's Basketball defeated the No. 15/19-ranked Emporia State Hornets 76-54 on Thursday night at Civic Arena.

Thames led the Griffons (8-2, 3-2 MIAA) with a season-high 25 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Dixon added 19 points, eight rebounds and two steals, and Fields helped out a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Missouri Western State grabbed 41 rebounds in Thursday's game compared to Emporia State's 25.

Missouri Western State's defense held Emporia State (9-2, 3-1 MIAA) to only 15.8% shooting from beyond the arc and 32.8% from the field. The Hornets did not have much luck cleaning up their misses on the offensive glass either, as they finished with nine offensive rebounds and managed 10 second-chance points, while MWSU cleared 32 defensive rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED
After jumping out to a 19-15 advantage, MWSU went on a 5-0 run with 5:38 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Thames, to increase its lead to 24-15. The Griffons then lost some of that lead but still entered halftime with a 28-25 advantage. Western did most of its first-half damage in the paint, scoring 16 of its 28 points close to the basket.

Western kept its lead intact before going on an 11-0 run, finished off by Dixon's three, to grow the lead to 54-41 with 7:42 to go in the contest. The Griffons kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 76-54 win. Glover hit his third three of the night with 20 seconds remaining to notch his 1,000th career point. 

Western took care of business in the paint, recording 24 of its 48 points in the lane.

GAME NOTES

• Fields notched a double-double for the Griffons with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
• The Griffons held the Hornets to only 32.8% shooting from the field.
• Western tallied 18 total assists in the game.
• Thames, Dixon and Fields combined to account for 76% of the Griffons' points.
• Western had a great day defensively, holding Emporia to 16% from beyond the arc on 19 attempts.
• Western had a 41-25 edge on the boards in the win.
• The Griffs got a game-high 12 rebounds from Fields. 
• Western has now won four straight over Emporia. 
• Since 2021, MWSU is 2-1 at Civic Arena. 
• The Griffons are 8-8 vs. top-25 teams in the Will Martin Era. 
• This is Martin's 50th career win as a head coach. 

UP NEXT
Western plays Washburn (5-4, 1-2 MIAA) this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. back at Civic Arena. The Ichabods fell 68-65 to Northwest Missouri State on Wednesday in Maryville, Missouri.