– The Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team fell to Duke University, 93-60, on Friday evening at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
– The game was played as exhibition contest for both teams.
– The Bearcats trailed, 56-30, at the break.
– Starting in 2009, Duke University has invited the Division II national champion for an annual exhibition game.
Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats hit 12 three pointers and limited Duke to just 8-of-24 (33.3 percent) from beyond the arc.
– Northwest grabbed nine offensive rebounds and forced the Blue Devils into 15 turnovers.
– Duke had just three steals and were 5-of-9 from the charity stripe.
– The Bearcat bench outscored the Blue Devil bench, 25-21.
– Ryan Hawkins scored a team-high 14 points with three rebounds, an assist and a steal. He was 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.
– Joey Witthus scored 12 points, hitting four three-pointers.
– Chris-Ebou Ndow had 10 points with a pair of rebounds and a steal.
– Justin Pitts had seven points with four assists, three steals and a rebound.
– Brett Dougherty grabbed a team high six rebounds to go along with three assists and a steal.
Key Northwest Sequence
– Ndow gave Northwest its only lead of the game early in the game. Duke scored the first point of the contest on a free throw by Marvin Bagley III. The Bearcat defense then stopped the Blue Devils by forcing a pair of turnovers. On Northwest’s third possession, Witthus missed a three but Brett Dougherty grabbed an offensive rebound and found Ndow for a three pointer, making it a 3-1 Bearcat lead.
– With Northwest trailing 14-5, Witthus nailed a three off an assist from Ryan Welty to make it a six point game. On the next sequence, Pitts came up with a steal on Grayson Allen. Welty grabbed an offensive rebound and drew a foul. He hit both free throws to pull the Bearcats within four, 14-10.
Up Next
– The Bearcats begin the season on Friday, Nov. 10, against Upper Iowa at 1 p.m. in St. Joseph, Mo. Northwest’s first action will be on Friday, Nov. 17, against Metro State at 7 p.m.
— Northwest Athletics —