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Author: Dave Riggert

Western women stay unbeaten with 37-point win over Illinois-Springfield

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MWSUAriana Novak and Sharniece Lewis each made three 3-pointers as the Griffons increased their record to 3-0 Friday night with their win over Illinois-Springfield 78-41.

Missouri Western jumped out to a 3-0 lead at MWSU Fieldhouse after Novak hit her first of three triples. Countered with 29 personal foul calls through the night on Illinois Springfield, it made for an easy one for the Griffons.

The Griffons led 21-14 with 8:31 remaining in the first half. The lead increased to double-digits shortly after when Novak sank a 3 to go up 25-14. Novak’s layup with 4:07 put Western up 34-16, its largest lead of the night until Lewis knocked down a triple one minute later to mark the score 37-18.

Quenisha Lockett and Alexis Gray have given coach Rob Edmisson two solid post players so far this year. Lockett’s 10 and Gray’s 11 helpted the Griffons increase their lead in the second half. Tiara Hall extended the lead past 30 as time began to wind down in the game.

Hall’s two free throws came right before Jallisa Lewis dropped in a final trey to mark the final score.

Lockett was 4 of 5 from the field, while Novak finished 5 of 11 for a game-high 15 points. The Prairie Stars were led by Alyssa Palmer, who had 10 points in their first game of the year. Missouri Western outrebounded Illinois-Springfield 45-31.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest drops opener of Hillyard Classic against No. 13 Midwestern State

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Northwest2013riggertSenior Dillon Starzl had a career-high 27 points but the Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball team fell to No. 13 Midwestern State, 78-71, on Friday evening on the opening day of the Hillyard Tipoff Classic at the Missouri Western Fieldhouse on Friday. Northwest is now 1-2 on the season while Midwestern State improves to 3-0.

Starzl was 8-of-14 from the field and hit 11 of his 13 free throws to lead the Bearcats with 27 points. Last season, Starzl had 25 points against Northeastern State (3/7/13). Bryston Williams had 12 points on the evening. Conner Crooker and Grant Cozad each added 11 points.

The Bearcats held close through the first half and trailed by just five points at the halftime break, 38-33. Northwest opened the second half with a 17-5 run, including a couple of three pointers from Crooker. The lead would grow to as many as 10 with 11:24 remaining in the game on a pair of Starzl free throws, 56-46. But Midwestern State rallied and eventually took the lead back with 2:36 remaining. The Bearcats would get back within two with 25 seconds remaining as Williams hit a pair of free throws. But the Mustangs hit five of their lastseven free throws to pull away for the victory.

Northwest will play William Jewell at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow on the final day of the Hillyard Tipoff Classic.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Missouri adds four-star guard Namon Wright

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MUMizzou Basketball added its second four-star recruit of the early signing period on Friday as shooting guard Namon Wright (Los Angeles / Pacific Hills), ranked No. 60 nationally by Scout.com, signed a National Letter of Intent to attend the University of Missouri and play basketball for the Tigers.

Wright joins four star forward Jakeenan Gant (Springfield, Ga. / Effingham County), a consensus Top 50 recruit nationally, who signed with Mizzou on Wednesday.

The 6-foot-4, 175-pound guard signed with Missouri after a host of West Coast offers, including hometown teams UCLA and USC. One of California’s top players entering the 2013-14 season, Wright helped lead a veteran Pacific Hills High School squad to the Division IV state crown and a 29-4 overall mark a year ago, averaging 15.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Wright enters his senior season ranked the No. 11 shooting guard in the class of 2014.

A big-game performer for Pacific Hills Head Coach Ivan Barahona (who is also the head coach of the El Salvador National Team), Wright scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the state championship win over Cardinal Newman and dropped in 20 points in the semifinal victory against Bishop Montgomery. He also competed at the Pangos All-America camp the last two seasons, including in 2012, where he played alongside current Tiger, Johnathan Williams, III.

“Namon just has a great feel for the game and similar to Wes Clark, he is always on the attack, looking for a way to beat you,” Haith said. “He is a bigger guard, which we like, and has great length that allows him to excel defensively. He has very good instincts and is very good at slashing and attacking the rim. His jump shot is still developing, but he can really get on a roll and will become much more consistent on the perimeter with repetition. He is still a good jump shooter and I think you will see that consistency settle in as the year continues.”

The senior-to-be was named a California Division IV second team all-state selection as a junior, as well as a first team all-Alpha League and second team all-Southern Section pick. One of the winningest programs in California, Wright helped Pacific Hills to the 2012 and 2013 CIF Southern Section titles and that 2013 state title.

“This was a very good class for us and fits two needs in our program,” Haith said when summing up the early signing period. “We needed some additional size and athleticism in the paint and Jakeenan is one of the country’s more athletic hybrid forwards. He can run the court, finish in transition and he has the chance to be a big time presence on the defensive end. Namon gives us very good size on the perimeter and he has an attacking mentality on the offensive end. He will keep developing as a shooter, but right now he puts a lot of pressure on his opponents because of his ability to score off the bounce.”

Wright becomes the third California native to play for Haith and the Tigers the last two years. He joins current junior Jabari Brown as well as former Tiger and Los Angeles native Keion Bell.

“Namon has nice upside,” Scout.com National Recruiting Analyst Evan Daniels said. “He is a very good athlete and can be a good defender at the collegiate level. He also has a decent skill set on the wing. He is a capable scorer and that is an area where he is going to get better at with time. He plays really well in transition and uses his athleticism to attack the rim.”

The Mizzou Basketball staff will remain active for the 2014 spring signing period.

— MU Sports Information —

Bearcat volleyball rallies to beat SBU in five sets

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NWMSUThe Northwest Missouri State volleyball team came back from two sets down to defeat Southwest Baptist, 3-2, on Friday evening inside Bearcat Arena in the regular season finale. Northwest moves to 12-17 on the season and will now await its seeding for the 2013 MIAA Tournament. Southwest Baptist drops to 17-14 overall. Both teams are now tied at 6-10 in MIAA play.

On senior night, Mackie Keller led the five Northwest players in double-digit kill totals with 15. Brooke Bartosh added 14 kills and Jackie Becker had 13 to go along with three blocks. Abby Graves and Shelby Duren each had 11 kills.Kirsten Hudgens had 37 assists and senior Bridget Hanafin had 23 assists. Libero Bailey Vance had a game-high 28 digs while Duren added 22. Aarika Wittenburg had 12 digs.

After dropping the first two sets, Northwest rebounded from an early third set deficit to force a game four, winning 25-22. In the fourth set, Southwest Baptist drew a couple early ties but never led in the set. Northwest used an 11-5 rally to finish off the set, 25-19, after SBU tied the match at 14-14.

Neither team pulled away early in the fifth set and as the teams traded sides at the midway point, Northwest held a slim lead, 8-7. But a couple timely kills from Bartosh and Becker gave the Bearcats some breathing room to pull away,15-7.

Prior to the match, Keller and Hanafin were honored as part of Senior Day festivities. This will conclude the 2013 Northwest volleyball regular season.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

MWSU volleyball sweeps Southwest Baptist to secure winning season

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MWSUFor the first time since 2006 the Missouri Western volleyball team secured a winning season by defeating Southwest Baptist 3-0 (25-22, 25-17, 25-21) in their final MIAA match of the season. The Griffons improve to 16-14 overall and 9-7 in MIAA play. It was also the first time since 2000 that the Griffons had a winning record in MIAA play. The Griffons will play next Tuesday night in the first round of the MIAA tournament. They will be on the road against Central Oklahoma or Nebraska-Kearney.

In a close first set that featured five ties the Griffons were able get a 25-22 victory. the Griffons never trailed in the set a they had 19 kils with Kelsey Olion getting six.

In set two the Griffons dominated taking the 25-17 victory and taking a 2-0 lead in the match. Both teams hit negative in the set but four serving errors by the Bearcats helped the Griffons to the victory.

After two sets the Griffons were led by Olion with eight kils while Kelly Scannell had 23 set assits and 14 digs. Sarah Faubel had 18 digs after two sets. The Bearcats had 22 kills with Jordan Nedbalek leading the way with six.

In the final set with the Griffons down 21-18 they went on a 7-0 run picking up the set three victory 25-21. the Griffons had 15 kills in th set with Amanda Boender getting six kills and three blocks.

In the match the Griffons had 42 kills with Olion and Boender leading the way with 10. Scannell finished with 33 while Faubel had 25 digs. Scannell had 19 had 19 digs while Rottinghaus finished with nine kills.

The Bearcats fall to 17-13 and 6-9 in the MIAA. The had 32 kills with Nedbalek getting seven and Fankhauser getting 25 set assists. Hannah Blount had 17 digs.

— MWSU Sports Information —

KU’s Self to receive Wayman Tisdale Humanitarian Award

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KUKansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self, who has guided KU to nine-straight Big 12 regular-season championships and two Final Fours, including the 2008 NCAA title, will be honored at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards in Oklahoma City, April 14 as the recipient of the Wayman Tisdale Humanitarian Award.

Self, who is one of four coaches in NCAA?Division I?history to have led three different schools – Tulsa, Illinois and Kansas – to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, will be honored at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The College Basketball Awards are produced annually by Access Sports in conjunction with the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).

“When you look at Bill Self’s record on the court and combine that with what he does off the court in the community and with his players, you see the very essence of what the Wayman Tisdale Humanitarian Award stands for,” said David Gillikin, Chairman of the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards. “We are very pleased to be able to recognize Coach Self and his accomplishments with this prestigious award.”

The Tisdale Humanitarian Award honors an individual involved in college basketball who has had a significant positive impact off the court well as on. Previous honorees include legendary ESPN and hall of fame announcer Dick Vitale, Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski and Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo. The award’s namesake, Wayman Tisdale, died in May 2009 after a two-year battle with cancer.

“I was very proud and honored when I was informed I would be receiving the Wayman Tisdale Humanitarian Award,” Self said. “There have been some very influential recipients who have deservedly received the award in the past and I’m not sure I fit in that category. To win an award that has Wayman Tisdale’s name tied to it is certainly humbling. Knowing Wayman and having played on the same AAU team with him, I was always a great fan of his. He personally had as much to do in popularizing the sport in the state of Oklahoma as anybody and it’s quite an honor for me to receive an award with his name on it.”

Prior to 2013-14, in 10 seasons at Kansas Self has a 300-59 record (83.6 percent), averaging 30 wins per season. Overall, Self has coached 20 seasons with a 507-164 record (75.6 percent). He won his 500th career game at Iowa State (108-96 in OT) on Feb. 25, 2013. The fastest KU coach to reach 300 wins at Kansas, Self’s milestone victory occurred during the 2013 NCAA Tournament against former KU coach Roy Williams’ North Carolina team, 70-58. Kansas’ 300 victories under Self are more wins than any other NCAA Division I school in the last 10 years. He was named just the eighth head coach in Kansas basketball history on April 21, 2003.

Bill and Cindy Self established the Assists Foundation in 2006 to help provide young people access to better lives. The mission of Assists is accomplished by identifying areas of need and working with other community-based institutions to provide creative and lasting solutions. The Assists Foundation supports scholarships and helps community organizations improve their facilities and programs so as to teach young people how to live healthy, productive lives. The foundation works to help young people have access to healthy lifestyle programs, facilitated by components of education, assessments, prevention, leadership, and competition. Self is also actively involved in a variety of other charitable efforts, including Coaches vs. Cancer and the V Foundation for Cancer Research.

Self will share the stage in April with college basketball’s Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year, the National Player of the Year, who will receive the Oscar Robertson Trophy, and the Henry Iba National Coach of the Year Award.

The Devon Energy College Basketball Awards are presented by Devon Energy, a leading independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company based in Oklahoma City. The event is produced by Access Sports, an Oklahoma City-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to supporting various charitable causes, including funding prosthetic devices for needy individuals through the Wayman L. Tisdale Foundation, funding of youth basketball programs throughout the state of Oklahoma through the Wayman’s Lightning Basketball League, and other worthy charitable causes.

— KU Sports Information —

Griffons win home opener against Midland, 86-68

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MWSUThe Missouri Western men’s basketball team had four players in double figures cruising to an 86-68 victory over the 8th ranked NAIA squad Midland University Warriors. Adarius Fulton dumped in 17 first half points while Dzenan Mrkaljevic scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half. The Griffons improve to 2-1 on the season with the victory.

The Griffons used a 23-8 run in the final 10:29 of the first half to claim a 13 point lead at 39-26 at the half over the Warriors. The Griffons were helped by Fulton’s 17 points with 15 coming off long range shots. The five three’s for Fulton ties his career high. He finished going 6-for-10 from the field and 5-of-8 from long range.

The Griffons had 12 points in the paint and eight points off six offensive rebounds. The made 14-of-31 shots and connected on 5-of-8 free throw attempts. Cortrez Colbert had four assists while Fulton had four steals in the frame.

The Warriors made just 10-of-24 field goals and 3-of-6 from long range and the charity stripe. They were led by Hadley Sejkora with six points while Galen Gullie and Jalen Hueser had three rebounds apiece.

The Griffons came out in the second as hot as they ended the first half building its lead to 23 at 53-30 after a Colbert three with 16:20 to play in the second half. The Warriors made a push midway through the second half cutting the Griffon lead to 13 at 71-58, but the Griffons went  on another big run ending any hopes of a Midland comeback.

The Griffons finished the night making 43.5-percent (10-23) long range shots and 50.0-percent (29-58) frmo the field. The Griffons did struggle a little bit from the free throw line making just 18-of-32. Colbert and Devers finished with 14 and 12 points respectively. The Griffons had 16 assists with Colbert and Fulton dishing out six and five respectively. Fulton finished with six of the Griffons 14 steals which was one shy of his career best.

The Warriors fall to 3-1 on the season as they had three players in double digits with Montrel Billups scoring 15 on 6-of-9 shooting. DJ Vaughn and Marcus Franklin had 13 and 12 points respectively.

The Griffons return to action on Friday, November 15 as they host the William Jewell Cardinals in the 22nd annual Hillyard Tipoff Classic. Game time is set for 8:00 pm in the MWSU Fieldhouse.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Mizzou announces the addition of Top 50 forward Jakeenan Gant

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MUMizzou Basketball announced the addition of one of the top players in the Class of 2014 on Wednesday as Jakeenan Gant (Springfield, Ga. / Effingham County), the top player in Georgia, signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball and attend the University of Missouri.

Gant (6-foot-8, 215 pounds) joins current Tiger freshman Johnathan Williams, III as consecutive Top 50 recruits to enter the Missouri program out of high school the last two seasons. He is ranked No. 47 nationally by Rivals.com, No. 48 by 247 Sports and No. 50 by ESPN.

“Jakeenan really fits our program in all aspects of his game and his approach,” Haith said. “He’s an outstanding young man from a great family and just has that competitive drive in everything he does. He was the top player in Georgia as a junior and will keep getting better and better as he matures and adds strength. He has the ability to step out and shoot the basketball on the perimeter, defend on all levels of the court and, as he adds that strength, his offensive post game will take that next step. Jakeenan can be a difference-making scorer and defender both on the wing and in the paint.”

The Georgia AAAAA Player of the Year as a junior, Gant averaged 17.9 points, 9.3 rebounds and nearly four blocked shots per game for Effingham Country last season. He led the Rebels to the AAAAA state semifinals and scored 30 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a semifinal loss to Gainesville (63-62). Effingham finished the year 27-5 and Gant was named the top player in the state for his efforts.

Effingham enters the 2013-14 season ranked No. 2 in Georgia Class AAAAA and Gant is ranked as the top player in Georgia.

“We are really excited to be adding a player of Jakeenan’s caliber to our program and we have started making a recruiting name in the Southeastern Conference footprint in a short period of time,” Haith said. “The fan support we have, the facilities and the academic track record at Missouri makes this a great place to continue your education. I am very excited about the future of our program, especially now that we have balanced out our recruiting classes.”

— MU Sports Information —

K-State bounces back and defeats Oral Roberts behind Foster’s 25

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KSUMANHATTAN, Kan. — Marcus Foster hit four 3-pointers and finished with 25 points, helping Kansas State rebound from a rare season-opening loss to beat Oral Roberts 71-63 on Wednesday night.

D.J. Johnson added 12 points and Will Spradling 10 for the Wildcats (1-1), who lost their first home opener in two decades to Northern Colorado earlier in the week. That defeat also ended the defending Big 12 champions’ 47-game winning streak at Bramlage Coliseum.

Kansas State struggled early on against the Golden Eagles (1-1) but finally found its rhythm early in the second half, and then made enough plays in the closing minutes to put them away.

Obi Emegano, a transfer from Western Illinois, scored 24 points to lead Oral Roberts. Utah transfer Shawn Glover scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half.

— Associated Press —

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