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Author: Dave Riggert

Northwest women fall at home to Fort Hays State

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Northwest2013riggertBy David Boyce

MARYVILLE, Mo. – When Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team avoided turnovers, the offense flowed well.

Unfortunately, the Bearcats had too many turnovers to keep pace with Fort Hays State Saturday afternoon at Bearcat Arena. Northwest lost 71-52.

Too often, the Bearcats telegraphed their passes, which allowed Fort Hays players to get their hands in the passing lane and steal the ball. Other times, the Bearcats were simply careless.

Northwest committed 12 turnovers in the first half and that contributed to an eight-point halftime deficit.

The Bearcats needed to clean up the miscues in the second half to make a run at the Tigers. It didn’t happen. Northwest committed an additional 17 turnovers in the second half.

Northwest quickly fell behind 40-28 early in the second half and faced a double-digit deficit most of the final 20 minutes.

Every time the Bearcats appeared to gain some momentum, a turnover halted all potential scoring runs. Northwest shot the ball well in the second half, making 10-of-22 from the field for 46 percent.

The turnovers, though, allowed Fort Hays to take 10 shots more than the Bearcats.

One bright spot for Northwest was freshman forward Tanya Meyer. She came off the bench and scored 10 points.

Despite going into halftime down 36-28, Northwest put together one of its best half of basketball in MIAA play.

In the opening 12 minutes, the Bearcats matched Fort Hays on the offensive end. There were eight lead changes during that span. Shelby Mustain scored on the inside and Taylor Shull hit a few jumpers.

All the momentum was in favor of the Bearcats when Mustain scored to give Northwest a 16-15. Northwest failed to increase its lead on several occasions because of a few unforced turnovers.

Fort Hays regained the lead at 17-16, and then Northwest hit one of its cold spells that has hampered the Bearcats so far this season. The Tigers took advantage and extended their lead to 33-22.

Instead of letting the deficit get out of hand, the Bearcats battled back. Shull and Ariel Easton made back-to-back driving layups late in the first half that helped Northwest close to 33-28.

— Northwest Athletics —

Oubre leads No. 10 Kansas to easy win over Lafayette

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riggertKULAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Brannen Greene’s tardiness turned into an opportunity for Kelly Oubre Jr., and the freshman made the most of a surprise start for No. 10 Kansas.

Oubre had 23 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Jayhawks to a 96-69 victory over Lafayette on Saturday.

“Today was a confidence booster, something to get me started,” Oubre said. “I’m just going to keep doing the things I’ve been doing, be patient and enjoy the process.”

Greene was expected to start, but coach Bill Self yanked the sophomore forward from the lineup because he was late to a weightlifting session.

“He wasn’t going to start today,” Self said of Oubre. “That was a gift from Brannen Greene.”

Oubre was 9 for 15 from the field in his second start of the season. He also was in the starting lineup on Nov. 18 against No. 1 Kentucky and had six points in just 13 minutes in the Jayhawks’ 72-40 loss.

Wayne Selden Jr. finished with 12 points, all in the second half for Kansas (9-1). Freshman Svi Mykhailiuk and junior Jamari Traylor each had 11 points, and freshman Cliff Alexander had 10.

“Everybody had a great week leading up to it,” junior Hunter Mickelson said. “We’re on break, everybody’s finishing up finals. I think putting all that together with everyone else having a great week, just kinda fitting in with getting everything right. We just had one of those weeks.”

Seth Hinrichs led Lafayette (7-3) with 15 points and seven rebounds.

“They’re the 10th-(ranked) team in the country,” Hinrichs said. “We competed for 30 minutes and I think we can be proud of that. We had a few turnovers and they went on a run.”

Kansas played without freshman Devonte’ Graham because of a toe injury, and junior Perry Ellis was limited to seven minutes in the first half.

“I don’t think Ellis felt well today,” Self said. “Something was up.”

Kansas used a 19-4 run to open a 26-11 lead with 8:43 remaining. Mykhailiuk made consecutive 3-pointer to increase the Jayhawks’ advantage to 45-28 at the break.

The Leopards rallied in the second half, closing to 59-52 on Monty Boykins’ 3-pointer. But Kansas pulled away again.

“We worked so hard to get back in the game and all of a sudden they would go right back up and quickly,” coach Fran O’Hanlon said. “I do think there was a point where they were battling against a good team. It was going to be hard to get back in that game.”

Kansas responded with a 15-4 run. Mason had two jumpers in the surge.

“When they made their run and we weren’t playing very well, the only reason why the game wasn’t closer because of Frank,” Self said.

TIP-INS

Kansas: The Jayhawks shot 50 percent (38 for 76) from the field and outrebounded the Leopards 44-26.

Lafayette: The Leopards are 0-3 against Big 12 opponents since O’Hanlon took over in 1995.

UP NEXT

Kansas visits Temple on Monday.

Lafayette hosts the New Jersey Institute of Technology on Dec. 28.

STAT LINES

Six different Jayhawks scored in double figures.

QUOTABLE

“I learned a lesson. I’m not gonna tell you guys who I’m starting.” — Bill Self

— Associated Press —

Kansas State defeats Texas A&M at Sprint Center

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riggertKStateKANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Texas A&M owned the stat sheet, but Kansas State owned the scoreboard.

The Aggies (7-3) had more rebounds, assists, points in the paint, and points off turnovers, and had half as many turnovers as the Wildcats (7-4), but the only stat that mattered was the final score, which showed Kansas State as a 71-64 winner in the Wildcat Classic at the Sprint Center on Saturday night.

“We won every stat,” Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy said following the game, “but we didn’t make enough tough plays when we needed to.”

Kansas State was in a de facto home game a little more than 100 miles from their Manhattan, Kansas campus, and the Wildcats used the partisan crowd to their advantage.

“Playing here is a special opportunity for our kids,” Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said. “I kept telling them that we had to take advantage of that. To have that crowd (14,884) was great, but we told them that they had to feed the crowd.”

Never was the crowd more a factor than when Wesley Iwundu grabbed a rebound on the defensive end and went end-to-end for a thunderous dunk. On the next play, he raced to get a pass that was too far in front of him and threw it over his head to teammate Nino Williams for an easy layup.

“I told him that’s the craziest dunk I’ve ever seen, in a game or watching a game,” Williams said. “He just took off.”

Williams was key for the Wildcats. He led the team with 17 points, and Weber called his game “efficient.”

“Nino was very efficient, like he’s been,” Weber said. “He knows his role. He’s a junkyard dog.”

Along with Williams, Thomas Gipson added 14 points, and Marcus Foster and Iwundu had 10 each. Texas A&M was led by Kourtney Roberson and Danuel House with 13 points each. Jordan Green had 11 and Alex Caruso 10.

“We fought at a high level,” Kennedy said. “Kansas State threw a lot of punches at us early. We responded too late.

“We’ve got pretty good character. We didn’t fold, and that was the best thing.”

The Wildcats saw their seven-point halftime lead trimmed to five points before an 11-2 run allowed them to put the game on cruise control. A 6-0 run by Texas A&M with just over four minutes remaining cut the lead to 61-54. The Wildcats missed six straight free throws to see the lead reduced to four points a couple of times, but held off the Aggies down the stretch.

Kansas State went inside early and often. After an opening 3-point basket by Justin Edwards, the Wildcats’ next nine field goals were inside the paint. It wasn’t until 6:16 remained in the first half that the Wildcats scored again from beyond 5 feet. Foster’s 3-pointer gave the Wildcats a 31-20 lead, the largest of the half.

“That’s what they were giving us,” Weber said. “They stayed with Marcus because they weren’t going to let him beat them.”

Even the first six free throws during the opening run were generated by fouls on inside play. In all, 10 of Kansas State’s 14 first-half field goals were in the paint. The Wildcats shot a sizzling 82 percent from the field in the first half.

TIP-INS

Texas A&M: Saturday’s game was the fifth of the Aggies’ six nonconference contests against teams that played in the NCAA tournament last season. The Aggies are 2/3 in those games. … Texas A&M is 7-18 against Kansas State, with most of those games coming when the Aggies were part of the Big 12 Conference. It was the first matchup between the two schools since Texas A&M left the Big 12 following the 2011-12 season.

Kansas State: The Wildcats are now 107-76 all-time in Kansas City.

STAT LINES

Nino Williams, coming off Big 12 Conference Player of the Week honors, was one of four Wildcats in double figures. He’s looking forward to some time off over the Christmas break. “He’s got a case of `old man knees,” coach Bruce Weber said. “He’s got to continue to take care of those things. But he’s been in the system and he’s learned how to make big plays.”

UP NEXT

Texas A&M hosts Mercer on Dec. 30.

Kansas State hosts Texas Southern on Dec. 28.

— Associated Press —

MWSU’s Jordan named to 3rd Team AP Little All-America team

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MWSUMissouri Western junior cornerback Mike Jordan has been named to his second All-America team as he is a member of the Associated Press Little All-America team.

Jordan is a third team choice on the AP team which is made up of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA team.

He was also named a first team AFCA All-American and was named first team All-MIAA for the second consecutive season.

Jordan is on the Don Hansen All-Super Region Three second-team and the DAKTRONICS All-Super Region three team.

He led the MIAA with 16 passes defensed and was tied for the league lead with four interceptions.

Click here for the full release from the Associated Press.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Mizzou’s Kuligowski earns Defensive Line Coach of the Year from FootballScoop

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Missouri vs Murray State - August 31, 2013 (Photo by Ben Walton)Missouri football defensive line coach Craig Kuligowski earned National Defensive Line Coach of the Year honors from FootballScoop.com, as announced by the national website on Friday (Dec. 19). The FootballScoop Coaches of the Year awards presented by ProGrass are the only set of awards that recognize the most outstanding position coaches in college football. Kuligowski coached a defensive line that helped Mizzou rank sixth nationally with 42 sacks and 11th with 96 tackles for loss.

Mizzou set a school record with 41 sacks a season ago, the majority coming from the defensive line, but Kuligowski and the rest of the Tiger coaching staff was tasked with replacing unanimous All-American Michael Sam (11.5 sacks in 2013) and second-round NFL Draft pick Kony Ealy (9.5 sacks in 2013) on the line. Despite the loss of those two players, Mizzou’s defensive line may have been even better in 2014 behind All-SEC performers Shane Ray (Kansas City, Mo.) and Markus Golden (St. Louis, Mo.) as Kuligowski’s tutelage led to 38.5 sacks and 70.5 tackles for loss from the Tiger defensive line this season. Kuligowski coached Ray to consensus First Team All-American status, Mizzou’s second consensus All-American in as many seasons.

Another mark of the defensive line presence was Mizzou’s rush defense, which allowed an SEC low 115.0 yards per game in league contests this season. The Tigers also ranked first in the SEC in total defense (300.8 yards per game) in their eight league games.

Mizzou’s defensive line has arguably been the best in the nation over the last two seasons under Kuligowski, who has coached with head coach Gary Pinkel for 23 seasons, dating back to their time at Toledo. Mizzou is fifth nationally with 83 sacks over the last two seasons and is one of just four schools in FBS to total 40 sacks in each of the last two seasons. Of those 83 sacks, the defensive line has accounted for 77.5.

— MU Sports Information —

Colbert leads Griffons to overtime win against Northeastern State

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MWSUThe Missouri Western men’s basketball team got big free throws and stiff defensive play down the stretch of an 83-78 overtime win over Northeastern State Thursday night inside the MWSU Fieldhouse.

It was the first overtime game for the Griffons since defeating No. 15 Fort Hays State last December. MWSU is now 5-4 on the season and 1-1 in MIAA play.

Missouri Western was 5-6 from the foul line in the overtime period and 18-29 for the night. The Griffons claimed 10 steals on the night, perhaps none more than important than two by Cortrez Colbert in OT to stop Northeastern State scoring chances.

Colbert stepped up in the game, leading all scorers with 25 points, four rebounds, five assists and four steals. Wes Mitter added 12 points on 4-4 shooting from behind the three-point line.

For the second straight game, all Griffons in the game scored with nine players scoring at least four points. The Griffons shot 57 percent from the field, 50 percent from three-point range and 62 percent at the free throw line. They held a narrow, 39-34 rebounding advantage and held the RiverHawks to a 41 percent field goal percentage.

The brief home stand continues Saturday when Missouri Western hosts Central Oklahoma at 3:30.  The game will air on 680 KFEQ and here on StJosephPost.com.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri State’s Steckel rounds out football coaching staff

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riggertMissouriStateMissouri State head football coach Dave Steckel did not have to look far to complete his initial Missouri State coaching roster, tabbing four current or former University of Missouri graduate assistants for full-time roles on MSU’s 2015 staff. Steckel announced the hiring of Peter Badovinac (linebackers), Mack Brown (tight ends/special teams), John Egorugwu (wide receivers) and Munir Prince (running backs) as assistant coaches Thursday, just four days after his own appointment as the 20th head coach in MSU history.

The new group of coaches puts the finishing touches on Steckel’s staff, following Wednesday’s announcement (linked above) of the hiring of offensive coordinator Mario Verduzco, defensive coordinator Marcus Yokeley, assistant coaches Kenji Jackson (safeties) and Chris Morton (defensive line), as well as the retention of Sean Coughlin (offensive line).

All four of the new hires – which are expected to be formally approved by the Missouri State Board of Governors at its next scheduled meeting on Jan. 21 — have direct ties to Steckel and the University of Missouri football program and will officially begin their roles at MSU following the Tigers’ Jan. 1 Citrus Bowl appearance.

“I’m excited to be able to bring in such a talented batch of young coaches,” Steckel commented. “Each of these guys either played or coached under us at Mizzou and they all bring tremendous knowledge and enthusiasm to the table, as well as an understanding of how we plan to put this program together.”

Assisting the Bears as linebackers coach, Badovinac (pronounced buh-DOE-vuh-nack) joins the MSU staff after spending the past two years working at Mizzou, where he helped the Tigers to a 22-5 overall record and back-to-back SEC East titles. He began his MU tenure as a recruiting graduate assistant, working to develop and implement the Tigers’ recruiting plans. He moved into the role of defensive graduate assistant prior to the start of the 2013 season, assisting Steckel with oversight of the MU linebackers and the coordination of the Tigers’ day-to-day practice preparations and scouting operations.

Badovinac joined the Missouri staff following the completion of his own playing career as a quarterback at Michigan State, where he was a part of the Spartans’ 2010 Big Ten championship team. The Inverness, Ill., native started his collegiate career at FCS member Drake University, picking up Pioneer League Academic Honor Roll recognition in 2008. He earned his undergraduate degree in general business from Michigan State in 2012 and completed his master’s program in education and school counseling at MU this fall.

Brown will work with the Bears tight ends and oversee the MSU special teams following a three-year stay as a graduate assistant at Missouri. Like Badovinac, Brown started as a recruiting GA before expanding his role with the Tigers coaching staff. He moved into the role of offensive quality control graduate assistant prior to the 2012 season, assisting the Mizzou offensive staff with the development and implementation of offensive schemes and scouting evaluations, as well as the execution of various administrative duties. For the past two seasons, Brown has worked with the Tigers tight ends as an offensive graduate assistant, helping MU post dramatic statistical improvements in numerous offensive categories and two straight Southeastern Conference East Division championships.

After earning his bachelor’s degree in education from Baker University, Brown began his coaching career as an assistant coach at William Jewell College, working with the Cardinals wideouts during the 2010 season. He also served as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Lawrence (Kan.) High School the following fall before beginning his graduate coaching experience at MU. As a player, Brown was a first-team All-HAAC performer in 2008 and a three-time NAIA Academic All-American for Baker, leading the Wildcats to their first NAIA playoff berth in 15 years. The Overland Park, Kan., product also completed a master’s degree in health, physical education and recreation from Emporia State in 2011.

Egorugwu (pronounced EGG-or-oo-goo) will oversee the development of the MSU wide receivers after completing a four-year apprenticeship at Missouri in three different graduate capacities. The Kansas City, Mo., native worked on both sides of the ball for the Tigers, serving as an offensive graduate assistant the last two years and helping a pair of MU wide receivers earn All-SEC honors. During the 2011 and 2012 campaigns, Egorugwu tutored the Tigers defensive backs as a defensive GA following his introduction to the Mizzou program as a recruiting assistant. He earned a master’s degree in education and counseling psychology in 2014 after completing a dual undergraduate degree in accounting and business administration from William Jewell in 2008.

A standout linebacker for Jewell during his playing days, Egorugwu was a four-year starter and two-time All-HAAC honoree for the Cardinals. He worked in the corporate realm for UMB Bank for two years before returning to Jewell’s campus to begin his coaching career as an assistant coach working with the program’s inside linebackers in 2010. In his one season on staff, Egorugwu saw a pair of his pupils garner all-conference recognition while helping coach a Jewell defense that ranked 13th national in total defense.

Prince (first name pronounced muh-NEAR) comes to Springfield after a brief stint as an assistant coach at Drake University, where he coached the Bulldogs’ interior receivers. The St. Louis native worked as an account executive for Drake IMG Sports Marketing for one year before joining the DU coaching staff this past summer. Prince, who will work with the Bears running backs, earned two degrees from Missouri, finishing his bachelor’s degree in business management in 2010, before completing an MBA program while assisting Gary Pinkel’s coaching staff as an offensive quality control graduate assistant from 20

As a player, Prince was a part of two Big 12 North Division championship teams and three bowl-qualifying squads during his own playing career as a defensive back for the Tigers. He began his career at Notre Dame, playing in 20 total games as a running back and defensive back during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

“Munir is an extremely bright young coach who not only played for us, but also got his start in coaching with our staff in Columbia,” Steckel added. “He’s been able to go out and gain a new perspective at Drake, and we’re looking forward to having him on board here at Missouri State.”

Steckel will begin his duties at Missouri State in January after Missouri’s New Year’s Day bowl game against Minnesota in Orlando.

— MSU Sports Information —

Western women roll to 68-35 win against Northeastern State

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MWSUThe Missouri Western women’s basketball team picked up their first MIAA win of the season, defeating Northeastern State 68-35 Thursday night in the Fieldhouse. It was the Griffons first game since dropping their conference opener, 81-57 at Fort Hays State on Dec. 6.

The Griffons out-rebounded the RiverHawks 44-28 and held NSU to 10-for-40 shooting from the field for just 25 percent. MWSU forced 20 NSU turnovers, claiming 13 steals.

Sarafina Handy led the Griffons with 13 points, followed by 11 from Alex Saxen and 10 from both Ariana Novak and Mili Koyamainavure.

Missouri Western hosts another MIAA contest this weekend when Central Oklahoma visits on Saturday.  The tip off is at 1:30 PM and it’ll be broadcast on 680 KFEQ and here on StJosephPost.com.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Benedictine’s Stochlin wins 2014 NAIA Rimington Award

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riggertBenedictineA day after learning that he was named a 2014 AFCA-NAIA All-American, Benedictine football’s David Stochlin earned another top national honor on Wednesday.

Stochlin was named the 2014 NAIA Rimington Award recipient as he was recognized as the top center at the NAIA level.

The Rimington Trophy is presented annually to the Most Outstanding Center in NCAA Division I-A College Football. Since its inception, the Rimington Trophy has raised over $2.5 million for the cystic fibrosis community. The fifteen-year old award is overseen by the Boomer Esiason Foundation, which is committed to finding a cure for cystic fibrosis and has raised over $100 million for CF Research.

Tuesday, Stochlin became the 68th NAIA All-America selection in program history and today he becomes the second Raven to be honored as a Rimington Award Recipient.

He anchored an offensively line that averaged 425.3 total yards per game this season while rushing for 219 yards per game.

Former Raven Truman Ashby was named the 2007 recipient of the NAIA’s Rimington Trophy.

Dave Rimington, the award’s namesake, was a consensus first-team All-America center at the University of Nebraska in 1981 and 1982, during which time he became the John Outland Trophy’s only double winner as the nation’s finest college interior lineman.

Three years after the Boomer Esiason Foundation launched the Rimington Trophy for the outstanding NCAA Division I-A center, it expanded that honor to include Divisions I-AA, II, III, and the NAIA. In 2008, Division I-A was renamed “Football Bowl Subdivision” (FBS), and Division I-AA was renamed “Football Championship Subdivision” (FCS).

Recipients are selected by Jason Dannelly, founder and editor of Victory Sports Network, a leading authority on small college football. Dannelly works with a committee of experts across all smaller divisions to select the winners of the Rimington Award.

The annual Rimington Trophy Presentation will be held January 17, 2015, at the Rococo Theatre in Lincoln, Nebraska.

— BC Sports Information —

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