BETHANY, Okla. – Griffon Men's Basketball (3-2) went on the road for the first time this season and came up short against No. 20 Southern Nazarene (3-0), falling 82–79 on Wednesday night at the Sawyer Center.
MoWest opened the first half on a hot streak, building its largest lead of the night at 15 points with a 26–11 advantage at the 10:51 mark. Southern Nazarene battled back the rest of the way, pushing the Griffons and closing the gap to send the game into halftime tied at 43–43.
The second half mirrored the final nine minutes of the opening half, with both teams trading punches in a tight back-and-forth battle that saw 13 lead changes and nine ties. MoWest held a 77–74 edge at the 3:56 mark after a bucket from
Gavin Hershberger, but Southern Nazarene answered by forcing a turnover that trimmed the margin to 77–76. The Crimson Storm then held the Griffons without a field goal until the 1:41 mark, taking an 80–79 lead. In the end, the No. 20 team in the nation closed it out, handing MWSU an 82–79 loss.
MoWest delivered an efficient night on the offensive end, finishing at 45.5% from the floor on 30-of-66 shooting while knocking down 11-of-25 attempts from deep for 44%. The Griffons also made the most of their limited trips to the line, converting 8-of-11 free throws at 72.7%.
Southern Nazarene countered with stronger overall accuracy, hitting 49.2% on a 30-of-61 performance. The Crimson Storm struggled from long range at 27.8% on 5-of-18 shooting, but they created separation at the stripe by sinking 17-of-22 free throws at 77.3%, outscoring MoWest by nine at the line.
Noah King paced the Griffons with a game-high 25 points, shooting 50 percent while adding five rebounds and two assists.
Gavin Hershberger followed with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting, and
Bode Goodman provided a spark with 10 points in just 13 minutes off the bench.
William Kiburis added eight points and pulled down a team-best six rebounds.
What's Next
Griffon Men's Basketball is back home at the Looney Complex this Saturday, November 22, hosting Quincy at 1 p.m.
