– The Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team defeated Missouri Valley, 83-48, on Saturday at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.
– Northwest improves to 6-0 with the victory. The contest was counted as an exhibition for Missouri Valley, 6-2.
– Justin Pitts scored 21 points in just 27 minutes of action. He had four assists and three rebounds.
– Northwest has now won 40 straight games at home, dating back to the 2014-15 season.
– View the photo album on Facebook.

Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats shot 48.4 percent (30-62) from the field, hitting on 18-of-31 attempts (58.1 percent) in the first half.
– Northwest committed just six turnovers while Missouri Valley had 22.
– Defensively, the Bearcats had nine steals and held the Vikings to just 17-of-44 (38.6 percent) shooting with just five three pointers.
– Joey Witthus hit three baskets from beyond the arc, finishing with 10 points and two assists.
– Chris-Ebou Ndow grabbed five rebounds and finished with seven points and a pair of steals.
– Ryan Welty hit three three-pointers and had nine points with a steal.
– Tyler Dougherty scored eight points and was a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. He tied for the team-high with five rebounds, four coming on the offensive end.
– Xavier Kurth grabbed three offensive rebounds, four total rebounds, six points and four assists.

Key Northwest Sequences
– Early in the first half, Northwest took control quickly with an 8-0 run. Witthus hit back-to-back three pointers and Brett Dougherty added a jumper to give the Bearcats an early 13-4 lead.

– With time winding down in the first half, Northwest again used the three-point attack to expand its lead. Pitts hit back-to-back three pointers and Welty drained one from beyond the arc with eight seconds left to play to give the Bearcats a 27 point lead at the break, 52-25.

Up Next
– Northwest will begin MIAA play on Thursday, Nov. 30, as the Bearcats host Northeastern State at 7:30 p.m. in Maryville, Mo.

— MWSU Athletics —