ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western men’s basketball team ended a three-game losing streak and halted Lindenwood’s three-game winning streak with an 88-78 win Thursday night over the MIAA’s second place team.

Missouri Western set the tone early, opening the game with four straight three pointers, three of them from freshman Miles Wentzien. Lindenwood roared back to take a one-point lead with 11:57 to go in the first half, but would not lead again the rest of the night. The Griffons finished 10-15 (66.7%) from behind the arc, shot 52 percent from the field and 70 percent from the free throw line. On the other end, Missouri Western limited Lindenwood to 17.4 percent shooting from long range and 41.3 percent from the field.

Wentzien finished with a career-high 21 points on 5-9 shooting from the field. The freshman added six rebounds. Trey Sampson was a perfect 3-3 from behind the arc, finishing with 19 points, four assists and four rebounds. Xavier Newson added 14 points and Aaron Emmanuel finished with 11 and a team-high seven rebounds.

The win moved Missouri Western’s record to 7-15 overall and 5-11 in the MIAA. Lindenwood fell to 15-7 and 11-5 in the league. The Griffons stay in the Fieldhouse this week with Lincoln visiting on Saturday.

— MWSU Athletics —