By David Boyce, Northwest Athletics

MARYVILLE, Mo. – On a night Northwest Missouri State honored 110 of the 155 student-athletes who obtained a 3.2 GPA or higher in the fall semester, the men’s basketball team needed to execute at an A level down the stretch.

Because Northwest made all the necessary plays in the final 2 minutes, it pulled out a 77-74 victory over Emporia State Wednesday evening in front of 1,189 fans at Bearcat Arena.

“We have to stay focused,” said sophomore Justine Pitts, who finished with 21 points. “Coming out in the second half, we really didn’t do the things that we did in the first half, like our defensive rotation.”

But they mad enough defensive plays to secure the win. And Northwest definitely did A work at the free throw line, going 26 for 28 for 92.9 percent, an A in just about any professor’s class.

The Bearcats head into their final home game of the season at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, riding an 11-game win streak. Northwest is 21-5 overall, 18-3 in the MIAA and a perfect 12-0 at home.

At halftime, it looked like Northwest was well on the way to an easy victory. The Bearcats held a 13-point lead and the crowd was charged up.

During the halftime festivities, 110 student-athletes walked out on the court and were handed certificates for their academic success in the classroom.

When the Bearcats returned to the court, some of that electricity was turned off. It took Northwest nearly 5 minutes to score and by that time, Emporia State had closed to 38-33.

“We kind of had a lack of focus,” said senior Conner Crooker, who finished with 10 points. “We need to realize when we have a decent lead we need to focus because everybody is trying to beat us.”

Northwest junior D’Vante Mosby stopped the 8-0 run with a power move inside. But the Hornets kept on buzzing and eventually grabbed a 46-45 lead. The lead changed hands two more times and then Northwest took the lead for good at 51-50 on a three-point play by sophomore Chris-Ebou Ndow.

Mosby solidified Northwest’s advantage with a basket, giving the Bearcats a 53-50 lead. Northwest’s lead eventually grew to 68-59 and then Emporia State made one more push. The Hornets closed to 71-70 with less than 2 minutes left.

In those final 120 seconds, Northwest needed to execute at a high level the rest of the way, and the Bearcats did. With 1:20 left, Mosby made a strong move in the paint for a basket, pushing Northwest’s lead to 73-70.

After Emporia State scored, Pitts made a basket, giving Northwest a three-point advantage again. The basket also put Pitts over the 1,000 career points.

“It feels great to do it in only two seasons,” Pitts said. “I don’t think I scored a thousand points in high school. It is a big accomplishment for me, and I am grateful for it.”

Obviously, the game wasn’t stopped to honor Pitts, and the Hornets probably didn’t care. They were looking to knock off the conference champions. Emporia State answered Pitts’ milestone basket with a tip-in bucket to make it a one-point game again.

With 20 seconds left, Mosby responded again. He stepped the free throw line and calmly drained two free throws, pushing Northwest’s lead to three. The Bearcats then played great defense the final 18 seconds for the win.

“Coach always says do your 1/5th and give all you have,” said Mosby, who finished with 16 points. “When they called my number, I am just glad it worked out.”

Northwest scored the first six points of the game and continued to play solid offense and defense throughout the first half, taking a 38-25 lead into halftime.

The Bearcats didn’t waste time opening up a double-digit lead at 16-6. Emporia State made a small run and closed to 22-17. Northwest answered with a three-point play from Pitts. Mosby followed with a basket and the lead was back to 10.

Except for one brief moment, Northwest maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the first half. The Bearcats shot 56.5 percent from the field and held Emporia State to 35.7 percent. Northwest also dominated the boards, outrebounding Emporia State 19-11.

“We came out a little more aggressive on offense and defense,” Pitts said. “In the second half, we got away from it.”

— Northwest Athletics —