KANSAS CITY, Mo. – No. 7 seed Griffon Women's Basketball (14-15, 9-10 MIAA) defeated No. 10 seed Nebraska Kearney (15-16, 8-11 MIAA) 77-69 in the opening round of the MIAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Municipal Auditorium.

The Griffons and Loopers traded baskets early in the opening period, with neither side gaining much separation. Nebraska–Kearney held a slim 12-11 lead at the 3:59 mark before the Griffons responded with a dominant 12-0 run to take control, pushing the lead to 23-12 and forcing a UNK timeout. Mia Morel paced the Griffons in the opening quarter with 13 points, helping MWSU close the period with a 26-12 advantage.

MWSU extended its run to open the second period, building its largest lead of the game at 28-12 with 9:06 remaining in the quarter to cap a 17-0 Griffon run. Nebraska–Kearney answered with a strong response, trimming the deficit to just two points as the teams headed into halftime with the score at 37-35.

MoWest opened the third period with an 8-0 run, pushing the score to 44-35 and forcing a Nebraska–Kearney timeout. The Lopers responded with a run of their own and capped the quarter with a buzzer-beater as time expired, taking a 53-52 lead into the fourth quarter.

With the score tied 57-57 in the fourth quarter, Morel scored the next seven points for the Griffons to give MWSU a 64-59 lead with 4:58 remaining. The Griffons continued to create separation from the Loopers, extending the advantage to 71-62 with 3:02 left in the game. MWSU closed it out from there, defeating UNK by a final score of 77-69.

Mia Morel played 39 minutes and led the Griffons with 37 points, shooting 14-of-29 from the field, 3-of-12 from three-point range and 6-of-7 at the free throw line. She added six rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Ana Oliveira Dias logged 39 minutes and finished with 12 points on 5-of-16 shooting, including 2-of-5 from beyond the arc. She recorded six rebounds, eight assists, five steals and one block.

Nakiya Harris played 35 minutes and totaled 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting and 1-of-2 from three-point range while going 1-of-2 at the line. She led the team on the glass with 16 rebounds and added two assists.

MWSU shot 42.0 percent (29-of-69) from the field, 32.0 percent (8-of-25) from three-point range, and 64.7 percent (11-of-17) from the free throw line.

UNK finished the game shooting 24-of-63 (38.1%) from the field, 7-of-22 (31.8%) from three-point range, and 14-of-25 (56.0%) from the free throw line.

What's Next
No. 7 seed Griffon Women's Basketball will face off against No. 2 seed Fort Hays State in the MIAA Women's Basketball Quarterfinals on Thursday, March 5 at 2:15 p.m.