The No. 1 ranked Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball team beat Missouri Valley College, 103-58, on Tuesday evening at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.
– The Bearcats move to a perfect 10-0 on the year. The game was counted as an exhibition contest for the Vikings.
– All 12 Northwest players who saw action in the contest scored at least two points in the game.
– Earlier in the day, the Bearcats were ranked first by the National Basketball Coaches Association (NABC).
– The last time Northwest was ranked No. 1 by the NABC was on Jan. 13, 2004.
Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats shot 60.6 percent from the field, connecting on 40-of-66 shots and 11-of-24 from beyond the arc (45.8 percent)
– Zach Schneider hit five three pointers to finish with 15 points, three rebounds, an assists and a steal.
– Freshman Tyler Dougherty matched Schneider’s game-high with a career-best 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting. He had three rebounds in the game as well.
– Chris-Ebou Ndow had 12 points and seven rebounds. Ndow had two assists and a pair of steals.
– Anthony Woods had a game-high seven assists to go along with nine points and a pair of steals.
– Dray Starzl and Grant Graham each scored career-highs with nine points and eight points, respectively. Starzl was 3-of-4 from long range.
– The team’s 15 steals was the most since Nov. 20, 2013 against Baker University (17 steals).
– Tuesday’s game marked the fifth time a Ben McCollum coached Northwest team has surpassed 100 points.
– The 45 point margin of victory is the second largest under McCollum. Northwest beat Manhattan Christian, 105-55, back on Nov. 16, 2009.
Key Northwest Sequence
– The Bearcats went on a 15-0 run late in the second half to take a commanding 27 point lead into the break. With six minutes to go, Schneider knocked down a three to put Northwest up, 36-20. The next trip down, Mosby drew a foul and hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 18. Woods took a defensive rebound the length of the floor and finished the layup to give the Bearcats a 40-20 lead. Graham and Mosby each added layups to push the lead to 24. Pitts then came up with a steal and on a fast break, lobbed an alley-oop to Ndow who slammed the finish for a 46-20 lead. Mosby added another layup the next time down to put Northwest up by 28, 48-20, with 1:58 to play in the first half.
Up Next
– Northwest’s men’s and women’s teams return to MIAA play on Saturday, Dec. 17, against Northeastern State in Tahlequah, Okla. The Bearcat women will start at 1:30 p.m. followed by the men at 3:30 p.m.
— Northwest Athletics —