KANSAS CITY, Mo. — JaRon Thames and
Julius Dixon both scored 11 points, while
Taye Fields grabbed a team-high eight boards, but Missouri Western Men's Basketball (14-16) was unable to overcome a red-hot shooting attack from No. 2/3 Northwest Missouri State (28-2), falling 65-52 in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Championship at Municipal Auditorium.
The Bearcats raced out to a 10-point (14-4) advantage in the opening minutes of the contest, but Missouri Western fought back with a 9-0 run that cut the deficit from 12 (20-8) at the 11:16 mark to three (20-17) after an off-balance 3-pointer by
Reese Glover with 8:55 to play in the opening half.
Northwest stretched its lead back into double-figures, going up by 11 (33-22) on a Diego Bernard jumper with 4:03 to play, before Missouri Western was able to cut the Bearcat lead to eight (35-27) at the half. A Dixon jumper in the opening seconds of the second half pulled the Griffs to within six (35-29), but the Bearcats surged ahead, leading by as many as 20 in the second half before Missouri Western narrowed down the final deficit to its 13-point margin.
NOTABLES
- Thames and Dixon were the lone Griffons to reach double-figures in scoring.
- Thames added a pair of steals and three rebounds.
- Fields added seven points to his eight-rebound performance.
- Will Eames and John Anderson Jr. dished out a team-best three assists apiece.
- Missouri Western tightened up the defensive pressure in the second half, as the Bearcats' shooting percentage dropped from 60.0 to 40.7 percent in the final 20 minutes.
- This game marks the final time that Anderson Jr., Eames and Alex John will suit up as Griffon student-athletes.
