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Category: College

Kansas State’s struggles continue with loss at TCU

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riggertKStateFORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — TCU started the season with 13 consecutive non-conference wins. Now the Horned Frogs finally have their first winning streak in the Big 12.

Chris Washburn scored 17 points and TCU beat Kansas State 69-55 on Wednesday night, giving the Frogs consecutive Big 12 victories for the first time since joining the league.

“We’re growing up, we’re maturing … I think the question was asked about learning how to win. You’ve got to go through it,” coach Trent Johnson said. “There was a stretch there when they made their run. We weren’t playing really well, but we sustained our confidence, and that enabled us to get out of that.”

TCU (16-10, 3-10 Big 12) never trailed in the game, building a 20-point halftime lead and holding on when K-State cut the gap to six points just more than eight minutes into the second half.

This is the third Big 12 season for the Horned Frogs, who went 0-18 in league play a season ago after a 2-16 debut in 2013. They were coming off a 70-55 home win over No. 22 Oklahoma State four days earlier.

Kansas State (13-14, 6-8) scored 11 consecutive points in less than two minutes early in the second half. The Wildcats were within 41-35 when Nino Williams made a free throw after a technical foul against TCU with 11:52 left.

But K-State then went scoreless for nearly 4 1/2 minutes, and was still down 14 when Tre Harris hit a 3-pointer with 7:29 left to end the drought.

“We just ran out of gas,” coach Bruce Weber said.

TCU had a 10-0 run in that span, which started when Brandon Parrish drove for a layup high off the glass. Washburn had a thunderous dunk while being fouled, plus a free throw, to make it 50-35 with just over 8 minutes left.

Karviar Shepherd added 12 points for TCU, while Kenrich Williams had 11 and Amric Fields 10.

Nino Williams had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats, who were coming off a win over No. 17 Oklahoma after a five-game losing streak. Harris had 14 points and Thomas Gipson 12.

“I told our guys both of us came off good wins on Saturday, and who had the maturity and determination to come and play hard, would be the one that would come out with another win,” Weber said.

Johnson’s pregame message was for his players was to build off how they finished against Oklahoma State, when they had a pair of 10-0 runs after halftime to win.

“That’s probably as good a first half of basketball as we played all year,” Johnson said afterward. “We knew they were going to make a run at us. We kept our poise.”

TCU had a 35-15 halftime lead that was bolstered by a 19-0 run over the final 7 1/2 minutes before the break.

Gipson made two free throws to get the Wildcats within 16-15 with 7:48 left in the first half, nearly two minutes after their last field goal of the half. But the Wildcats didn’t score again before the break, and six different TCU players scored in the big run — with only Shepherd making multiple field goals in that stretch.

—

SHOTS FALLING

Shepherd has consecutive double-figure scoring games for TCU after none in 16 games since Dec. 4. The Horned Frogs have shot over 50 percent in consecutive games after missing 87 shots in the two games before that.

BOTTOM HALF

The 15 points in the first half weren’t even the lowest this season by Kansas State. The Wildcats had had 12 at halftime in a 50-46 loss to Georgia on Dec. 31. Against TCU, they shot only 16 percent (4 for 25) from the field while the Frogs made 14 of 22 shots (64 percent).

TIP-INS

Kansas St.: The Wildcats are 1-8 in road games.

TCU: Shepherd and Washburn each had eight rebounds. … The technical foul was against Trey Zeigler after he pushed away a dead ball that hit a K-State player.

UP NEXT

Kansas State plays at No. 20 Baylor on Saturday.

TCU is at No. 8 Kansas on Saturday.

— Associated Press —

Missouri State beats Indiana State to snap four-game skid

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riggertMissouriStateSPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Freshman Chris Kendrix scored a career-best 20 points — including a key rebound and free throw in the final seconds — as Missouri State snapped a four-game skid to defeat Indiana State 60-56 Wednesday night.

Missouri State (10-17, 4-11 Missouri Valley) took the lead for good, 57-56 with a Dorrian Williams pull up jumper with 49 seconds remaining. In that final span, Indiana State (13-14, 9-6) missed four shots, including a trio of 3-point tries.

It was after Khristian Smith missed a trey with six seconds left that Kendrix collared the rebound and was fouled. He sank the front end of a one-and-one to push the lead to 60-56. It was enough even as Indiana State’s Justin Gant missed a trey in the final two seconds.

Williams scored 16 for the Bears. Kendrix added eight rebounds, also a career best.

Frosh Brenton Scott led the Sycamores with 16 points, Smith added 13.

— Associated Press —

Griffon baseball moves MIAA opening series to Emporia

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riggertMissouriWesternST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Winter weather has forced Missouri Western’s baseball home opener to be rescheduled and moved. The Griffons were to play No. 4 Emporia State in a four-game series Friday through Sunday in St. Joseph. Those games will now be played in Emporia, Kansas on Thursday and Friday.

MIAA rules will allow Missouri Western to still be considered the home team, though the games will be played in Emporia.

The fourth ranked Hornets are 4-0 and ended the Griffons season last year with two wins in the MIAA Tournament.

Missouri Western will enter the series with a 3-4 record. MWSU Head Coach Buzz Verduzco will begin his quest for 300 MIAA victories as he enters the MIAA schedule with 298 conference wins.

— MWSU Sports Information —

No. 8 KU misses last-second layup, falls to No. 23 West Virginia 62-61

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riggertKUMORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Leg cramps weren’t going to keep Juwan Staten from getting West Virginia to 20 wins for the first time in four seasons on Monday night.

Staten scored 20 points, including a layup with four seconds left, then draped Perry Ellis on the other end after a long pass before the Jayhawks forward missed a layup off the back of the rim at the buzzer as No. 23 West Virginia beat No. 8 Kansas 62-61.

“I might have rushed it a little bit, but I should have made it,” Ellis said.

It was a resume-building victory for the Mountaineers (20-6, 8-5 Big 12), who had lost three of their previous four games and four straight against ranked opponents. They’re looking for their first NCAA tournament bid in three seasons.

“This was definitely a must-win game at home,” Staten said. “We had the crowd behind us and we fought to the end.”

With the game on the line, coach Bob Huggins knew who he wanted to give the ball to: Staten, West Virginia’s leading scorer and the Big 12 preseason player of the year.

Staten took an inbounds pass and went the length of the court, made a spin move around Frank Mason III and hit the left-handed layup over the outstretched arms of two other Kansas defenders.

It was Staten’s first field goal over the final eight minutes after he had gone to the bench with cramps.

“That is exactly how we drew it up,” Staten said. “When I spinned, I’d seen nothing in the lane. I laid the ball up. It was a good call by coach.”

Ellis finished with 19 points, Mason had 18 and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 14 points for first-place Kansas (21-5, 10-3), whose lead was trimmed to 1.5 games over No. 14 Iowa State.

Jevon Carter, who also played through leg cramps, added 13 points for West Virginia, including back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Mountaineers ahead 60-59 with 2:31 remaining.

“I’ve got to give a lot of credit to my teammates for setting me up with good passes and good screens leading to open shots,” Carter said. “I just dug deep, knocked them in and gave my team the momentum.”

Mason made a layup with 2:13 left to give Kansas the lead, but the Jayhawks didn’t score again. He missed another layup with nine seconds left and the ball went out of bounds, setting up Staten’s heroics.

“He made a nice play, but we couldn’t have defended it worse,” said Kansas coach Bill Self.

Ellis had 15 points after halftime, capping a 10-0 run to start the second half with a 3-pointer to put Kansas ahead 40-33. But the Jayhawks later went seven minutes without a field goal.

Staten hit a layup and a jumper 50 seconds apart, and Jonathan Holton made a free throw to put West Virginia ahead 50-49 with 7:20 left.

“We had our chances but we just didn’t capitalize,” Self said. “The end of the game was a perfect example. Jamari makes the best pass of the year, Perry catches it right in stride, has an uncontested layup and basically he just missed the layup.”

TIP-INS:

Kansas: The Big 12’s top 3-point shooting team made 6 of 11. … Wayne Selden, who averaged 16 points over his five previous games, was held to four Monday night.

West Virginia: The Mountaineers led by as many as 11 points in the first half, were ahead 33-30 at halftime and were outscored in the second half for the fifth straight game. … Devin Williams reinjured his right hand that had been heavily taped in a loss at Iowa State on Saturday. Williams, who had 22 points and 13 rebounds a year ago in a home win over Kansas, finished with eight points and four rebounds.

BOARD SAVVY:

Huggins admits his team doesn’t shoot well consistently, which is why he stresses getting multiple chances on offensive possessions. West Virginia leads the nation with 17 offensive rebounds per game and got 22 on Monday night.

UP NEXT:

Kansas hosts TCU on Saturday.

West Virginia plays at No. 22 Oklahoma State on Saturday.

— Associated Press —

Mizzou women defeat Ole Miss on Sunday 72-58

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riggertMizzouColumbia, Mo. – The Missouri women’s basketball team took down Ole Miss on  Sunday, defeating the Rebels 72-58.  The Tigers move to 14-12 overall and 4-9 in SEC play. Several Tigers stood out in the game with three finishing in double figures, led by Morgan Eye who tallied 16 points and five rebounds.

Mizzou came out hot in the first half, scoring off the opening tip. The Tigers knocked down a bucket by sophomore Jordan Frericks followed by a three-pointer by sophomore Sierra Michaelis. The Tigers used a 10-0 run over a two-minute span in the first half to stretch their lead to 21-7. Mizzou found scoring from eight different players and were led by junior Maddie Stock and junior Michelle Hudyn with eight points, respectively.

The Mizzou defense held the Rebels to a 28.9 field goal percentage and forced six Ole Miss turnovers. Mizzou went into the locker room leading the Rebels, 38-25.

Stretching the lead to 18 points, the Tigers were firing on all cylinders in the second half. Mizzou continued to beat Ole Miss’s pressure on defense and distribute the ball well. The Tigers ended the game with 14 assists on 26 field goals. Despite Ole Miss’ 27 offensive rebounds in the game, the Tigers were able to hold the Rebels to just 15 second chance points, stifling any addition shots the Rebels could take.

Senior Morgan Eye continued on her quest to the NCAA statistical leader in three-pointers made, knocking down two treys and going 4-for-4 from the line, amassing a team-high 16 points. Sierra Michaelis was again an offensive weapon for Mizzou scoring another 15 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Junior Michelle Hudyn had a career-high 10 points in the contest and added another seven rebounds for the Tigers.

Mizzou found 32 of their 72 points in the paint and shot the ball efficiently throughout the game, ending the contest a 54.2 field goal percentage.

The Tigers are on the road for the next two games. They travel to Vanderbilt for a contest against the Commodores next Sunday (Feb. 22) at 1:00 p.m. and then go to Texas A&M on Feb. 26 for a 7:00 p.m. game.

— MU Sports Information —

Nebraska falls at Purdue for third straight loss

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NebraskariggertWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — For Purdue, Sunday’s first seven minutes comprised all the makings of what could have been a frustrating and unexpected home loss.

The Boilermakers made only one of their first eight field goal attempts and one of their first six free throws but trailed Nebraska only 8-3 in Mackey Arena when it really could have been much worse.

With Vince Edwards scoring 15 points and Kendall Stephens adding 12, Purdue finally got untracked and pulled away to a 66-54 Big Ten Conference victory.

Purdue (17-9, 9-4) pulled back into a second-place tie with 19th-ranked Maryland, each three games in the loss column behind No. 5 Wisconsin. The Boilermakers beat Nebraska (13-12, 5-8) for the fifth consecutive time in West Lafayette. Purdue improved to 6-1 in Big Ten home games, losing only to Maryland on Jan. 10.

“It has been a good lesson for our guys to hang in there when shots haven’t been going down,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said. “Sometimes when you struggle from the perimeter, it affects other parts of the game. For the most part in the last month, when we have struggled shooting the ball, we have hung in there.”

Nebraska coach Tim Miles acknowledged what might have been had his team not followed a good start with a 3-of-16 shooting drought.

“We make our first three buckets, and then we go on a long dry spell,” Miles said. “I was sitting there at halftime thinking that we had played good defense and they had missed 19 shots.”

At that point, Nebraska trailed 26-20, and Purdue had weathered the storm.

Purdue used a 10-2 run that began with 14:54 remaining to take a 48-32 lead with 12:19 to go. That burst included a three-point play from Edwards and a 3-pointer from Stephens.

After Nebraska countered with a 7-0 run, Stephens sank his fourth 3-pointer to give the Boilermakers a 51-39 advantage with 10:11 to go.

Isaac Haas and Rapheal Davis had layups that pushed the Purdue lead to 55-39 with 9:18 to go.

Nebraska closed within seven points with less than five minutes, but Dakota Mathias’ 3-pointer with 1:51 iced it for Purdue at 64-51. The freshman guard added 10 points.

“My teammates did a good job finding me when I really wanted to complement our big men,” said Edwards, who made 6 of 10 shots. “Most of the time, our big men were being doubled inside. Our bigs draw a lot of attention, so that can create opportunities. We had to knock down open shots, and we made those shots.”

Edwards, Stephens and Mathias were a collective 8 of 14 from 3-point range on a day when 7-footers Haas and A.J. Hammons were only a combined 3 of 9 from the field and 7 of 15 from the free-throw line for 13 points. Hammons had 12 rebounds, and Haas had four.

“Making those 3-point shots was huge,” said Stephens, who was 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. “They were really trapping Isaac and A.J. quickly.”

Purdue finished 8 of 21 from 3-point range, outscored Nebraska 18-7 from the free throw line and outrebounded the Cornhuskers 44-29.

Shavon Shields led the Cornhuskers with 19, and Terran Petteway added 13.

The Boilermakers took their first lead at 13-12 on a Davis layup at the 8:06 mark.

—

TIP-INS

Nebraska: The Cornhuskers have lost five of their last six. … Nebraska made its first three field-goal attempts on Sunday, then made only six of its final 26 opening-half shots. … Terran Petteway or Shavon Shields has led Nebraska’s scoring in 24 of 25 games this season.

Purdue: The Boilermakers have won six of seven, losing only at Minnesota. … In conference games, Purdue and Ohio State are the only teams to rank among the top four in field-goal percentage and field-goal percentage defense. … Purdue’s 17th victory is its most since the 2011-2012 team finished 22-13.

STAT LINES

Purdue had 18 offensive rebounds — 10 more than Nebraska — and enjoyed a 23-7 advantage in second chance points. … The Boilermakers got 19 points from their non-starters, 11 more than the Cornhuskers. … Four Purdue players — Hammons, Davis, Octeus and Edwards — combined for 32 rebounds. Nebraska finished with 29.

STAR POWER

Nebraska’s Petteway, who entered averaging a team-best 18.9 points, was held to 13 on 5-of-12 shooting, including only 1 of 6 from 3-point range. He also was guilty of four turnovers.

UP NEXT

Nebraska visits Maryland on Thursday night.

Purdue visits Indiana on Thursday night.

— Associated Press —

Missouri State loses at home to No. 13 Northern Iowa

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riggertMissouriStateSPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Four days after a season-high performance from 3-point range, Northern Iowa did it again.

Seth Tuttle scored 22 points and the No. 13 Panthers matched their season-high with 12 3-pointers to beat Missouri State 68-57 on Sunday. They also hit 12 3s against Illinois State on Wednesday.

Jeremy Morgan and Deon Mitchell each added 11 points for Northern Iowa (24-2, 13-1 Missouri Valley Conference). Camyn Boone had 14 points and six rebounds to lead Missouri State (9-17, 3-11 MVC).

A strong first-half was the difference for Northern Iowa. The Panthers shot 57 percent from the field (16 of 28) in the first-half, including nine of 14 from behind the arc. Northern Iowa had 14 assists and led 42-20 by halftime.

“We’re getting some pretty good looks,” Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson said. “We’ve got guys that are finding themselves with some really good looks. My message to the guys is that you’re going to go out and play really aggressive, and the guys are doing a good job.”

Tuttle made 10 of 12 shots on Sunday, including the first eight he took. He added four rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes.

“Seth is so unselfish and he’s got such a good feel that, no matter how he’s going to get defended . he makes everything work,” Jacobson said. “He could take more shots, but he doesn’t because he wants our team to have good offense. He wants our team to do well.”

The victory stretched Northern Iowa’s win streak to 13-games — the fifth-longest current streak in the nation. Missouri State lost for the 10th time in its last 11 games.

“We ran into a buzzsaw,” Missouri State coach Paul Lusk said. “I thought they came out and … stole our energy and stole our spirit and that’s what good teams do. We just didn’t have any answers. When they shoot it like that, they’re one of the best teams in the country.”

Tuttle scored 10 points in the first six minutes as Northern Iowa blitzed to a 16-4 lead. The Panthers made six of their first eight shots, including four of five from 3-point range.

The Panthers’ lead grew to 16 on a 3-pointer by Nate Buss midway through the half, prompting Missouri State coach Paul Lusk to burn his second timeout. It didn’t help. Back-to-back treys from Jeremy Morgan and Wyatt Lohaus stretched the Northern Iowa lead to 35-13 with 6:08 remaining. Seven different Panthers made 3’s in the first-half.

“We’ve been playing pretty good on the road,” Mitchell said. “Getting off to a good start, especially on the road today, is something that helps us.”

Missouri State rallied in the second half, closing the game on an 11-2 run that made the final margin closer than the game actually was. Despite his team’s lackluster finish, Jacobson wasn’t concerned.

“That’s more on me and what I’m talking about as opposed to what (our guys) are doing,” Jacobson said. “I thought the guys played great all the way through.”

TIP-INS:

Northern Iowa: With the win, Jacobson became the eighth coach in the history of the Missouri Valley Conference to reach 100 league victories. Henry Iba (1934-57) owns the most coaching wins in the conference with 187.

Missouri State: After competing with only seven scholarship players in their last two games due to injuries, the Bears were back to nine scholarship players in uniform on Sunday. Dorrian Williams (concussion) and Christian Kirk (precautionary/health) returned to action.

UP NEXT

Northern Iowa: visits Loyola on Wednesday.

Missouri State: hosts Indiana State on Wednesday.

— Associated Press —

Griffons can’t hold late lead as they fall short at Missouri Southern

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MWSUJoplin, Mo. – The Missouri Western men’s basketball team came close to a redemption win in Joplin, but ultimately fell short in an 83-77 loss at Missouri Southern.

The Griffons erased a six-point halftime deficit to take a 73-71 lead with 4:29 to go. Missouri Southern would outscore the Griffons 12-6 over the final four minutes. Free throws by Missouri Southern down the stretch proved to be the difference with the Lions finishing 31-44 from the line while the Griffons went 22-30.

The Griffons finished shooting 42 percent from the field, 28 percent from three-point range and 73.3 percent from the free throw line. Cortrez Colbert led all scorers with 17 points and six rebounds. Kevin Thomas finished with a double-double, scoring 12 and pulling down 14 rebounds. Currie Byrd had 11 points and Hans Thun added 10.

Missouri Western sits at 10-12 overall and 6-9 in MIAA play as they return home to face Lincoln this Wednesday.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri’s rally comes up short against Mississippi State

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riggertMizzouCOLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Mississippi State coach Rick Ray said Saturday he doesn’t care how his team wins on the road, just so long as it does. Still, he would like the Bulldogs to play better when holding a lead.

“I thought we got a little lackadaisical out there and lost some discipline, but fortunately we were able to hang on for the win,” he said after his team held off Missouri, 77-74.

After generating an 11-point halftime lead, the Bulldogs (12-13, 5-7 Southeastern Conference) converted all six of their free throws in the final minute to edge the Tigers, who lost their 11th consecutive game since winning their SEC opener against LSU on Jan. 8.

Roquez Johnson and Craig Sword both finished with 22 points to pace Mississippi State, which ended a two-game losing streak and won its third league game on the road.

Johnathan Williams III finished with a career-high 27 points for Missouri (7-18, 1-11), while Keith Shamburger added 15 and Ryan Rosburg a season-high 12.

“You’ve heard it before,” Tigers coach Kim Anderson said. “We got close, and we just couldn’t finish the deal.”

Despite Missouri scoring the first five points of the game, the Bulldogs seized control in the first half, using a 21-5 run to grab a 33-16 lead with 7:21 remaining before halftime. The Tigers answered with seven points of their own, but trailed 40-29 entering the break.

Missouri came to life in the second half, using a 13-4 run to narrow its deficit to 46-42 five minutes in. When Keanau Post drained a layup with 4:29 remaining to give the Tigers a 64-63 advantage — the team’s first lead in nearly 32 minutes — an elated crowd of 8,278 jumped to its feet, hoping for an end to the school’s longest losing streak in 48 years.

It wasn’t meant to be, though, as Johnson answered with a traditional three-point play off an offensive rebound to give the Bulldogs the lead for good despite the pressurized final 60 seconds.

“Everyone was all excited,” Rosburg said. “That’s just the way it is. One possession can change everything. If they don’t get that and we build a lead, then who knows what happens.”

TIP-INS

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs combined to shoot 31 of 91 (34.1 percent) in their previous two games, but finished 23 of 41 (56.1 percent) Saturday, moving to 9-1 when shooting 45 percent or better in a game.

Missouri: The Tigers honored this year’s inductees to the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame at halftime, including current NFL players Chase Coffman, Chase Daniel and Jeremy Maclin. . Missouri finished 26 of 59 (44.1 percent) overall from the field.

TIGER TRANSACTIONS

Missouri received a bit of a boost from the return of freshmen guards Montaque Gill-Caesar and Namon Wright, both of whom were suspended two games stemming from undisclosed violations of team rules. The duo entered the day combining for 15.1 points per game, and together scored eight on Saturday.

Missouri was still limited to nine scholarship players, though, as sophomore guard Wes Clark watched from the bench while wearing a sling to protect a dislocated right elbow incurred at South Carolina on Tuesday. He will miss the remainder of the season.

Freshman guard Tramaine Isabell, meanwhile, missed his fifth consecutive game after coach Kim Anderson described his behavior as “unacceptable” last month.

FREE THROWS

Mississippi State finished 26 for 33 at the line, while Missouri converted just 14 of 21 attempts.

“Any time you’re in a tight ballgame, you’ve got to score when the clock is stopped,” Ray said.

UP NEXT

Mississippi State returns home to face rival Mississippi on Thursday.

Missouri hits the road to play Arkansas on Wednesday.

— Associated Press —

Missouri Western women have three-game win streak snapped by Southern

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MWSUJOPLIN, Mo. – The Missouri Western women’s basketball team had its three-game winning streak snapped in an 81-69 loss at Missouri Southern Saturday.

The Griffons led by four with four minutes to go in the first half, but a 10-0 run to close the half by the Lions put MWSU down 37-31 at the half. Missouri Southern stretched their lead to 15 on an 8-0 run lead to open the second half and never looked back.

Both teams made 21 field goals but 35 of 42 shooting from the free throw line by Missouri Southern proved to be the difference. MWSU shot 42 percent from the field, 20 percent from three-point range and 72.7 percent at the free throw line.

LaQuinta Jefferson scored 27 with Miliakere Koyamainavure adding 13 with 10 rebounds. Sarafina Handy ended the game with 10 points but was limited to 16 minutes due to foul trouble.

The Griffons return home with an 11-10 record, 6-9 in MIAA play when they host Lincoln this Wednesday.

— MWSU Sports Information —

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