The game remained close throughout the first half with neither team taking a big lead. The Griffons jumped ahead midway through the first half as James Harris hit Alfreeman Flowers in mid-air, and Flowers slammed the alley-oop home to give Missouri Western a 25-21 lead. The dunk came just seconds after the Griffons took the lead for the first ime in the game as Reed Mells nailed a mid-range jumper with 8:38 to play in the first half.

Truman took a 36-34 halftime lead behind Isaac Garnder’s performance off the bench. Gardner scored nine points, three from downtown, and grabbed three rebounds to put the Bulldogs ahead.

The Griffons were led by Alex Tuluka-Mfumupembe, who scored eight points — including back-to-back 3-pointers. The big difference in the first half was the 3s, as Truman went 8-from-19 from the 3-point line, and the Griffons were 3-of-12.

Truman cooled off in the second half, and the Griffons were able to use that to take a 54-48 lead with just more than 10 minutes to play. But after a 12-3 run, the Bulldogs pulled ahead to take a 60-57 lead with 7:56 to play.

The score remained tight from there as the Griffons trailed 61-60 and then 65-64. Truman’s Cole Myers knocked down a rare 3 in the second half, as Truman was just 4-for-18 in the frame, but the 3-pointer gave the Bulldogs a 68-64 lead with 26 seconds to play.

TSU finished the win off 71-69 to win the conference opener. Cedric Clinkscales finished the game with 14 points and 10 rebounds, his third double-double this season. Dzenan Mrkaljevic ended the night with nine points and eight rebounds.

Next up for the Griffons play Fort Hays State Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —