The Missouri Western men’s basketball team improved to 2-0 with an 87-46 win over Manhattan Christian. It was another slow start for the Griffons, trailing by six with 8:35 to go in the first half. From that point on Western outscored the Crusaders, 60-23 to get the victory.

After falling behind the Crusaders, the Griffons used a 29-6 run to go into halftime up, 47-31. Josh Camacho opened up the second half scoring with a layup for Manhattan Christian. Western opened the second frame with a run of their own. James Harris’s three with 8:22 in the game capped off a 26-8 Griffon run in the second half.

TJ Johnson scored 14 of his game-high, 22 points in the first half. Lavonte Douglas added 16 points and seven rebounds. James Harris had 12 points and three assists. Justin Reid led the Griffons with eight rebounds. Freshman Freddie Manyawu blocked four shots in his 10 minutes of action.

Western shot nearly 48 percent from the field and 60 percent from the free-throw line. The Griffons scored 50 points in the paint, to the Crusaders. Defensively, Western held Manhattan Christian to 33 percent shooting from the field.

The Griffons return to action this Friday, when they host William Jewell in the 20th annual Hillyard Tipoff Classic. The Griffons and Cardinals tip off at 7:30 p.m. Friday night. The Griffons will play Rockhurst, Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —