By David Boyce

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Like a hit-selling rock-and-roll band coming to town, Northwest Missouri State’s men’s basketball team entered a packed arena as the star attraction.

OK, Jason Gym is not Madison Square Garden. But Northwest performed like a band hitting all the right notes in its 80-75 victory over Lincoln University Thursday evening to remain undefeated at 20-0 overall and 12-0 in the MIAA.

“It was tough,” said Northwest junior Chris-Ebou Ndow. “They had a really good home crowd and their band was pretty cool, too. It makes everything a little tougher, a different challenge, a little adversity. We overcame it and came away with a win.”

Yes, there actually was a band in the house. Lincoln’s pep band was energized throughout the game and kept playing 15 minutes after the game.

“It was crazy,” said freshman Ryan Welty, experiencing his first game at Lincoln. “It was a lot of fun to be part of it.”

A 50-point performance by Lincoln senior Anthony Virdure forced the Bearcats to play with high intensity for 40 minutes.

“He was tough,” Ndow said. “He is a really good player. He put the team on his shoulder and almost got them a win. The main thing is we stopped all the other ones. Nobody else really got in the rhythm.”

Northwest had a more balanced attack with four players scoring in double figures, led by junior Justin Pitts with 20 and junior Xavier Kurth with 15. Brett Dougherty scored 12 and Anthony Woods added 10.

In the final 9 minutes, Northwest showed why it is ranked No. 1 in the NABC top 25. Holding a narrow 47-45 lead, Ndow powered inside for a basket with 8:40 left.

After a stop, Ndow got the ball again in the paint and converted, giving Northwest a 51-45 lead with 8 minutes remaining.

“It was important,” Ndow said. “At that point we needed a spark. I felt there was a long stretch we couldn’t make a run. That was kind of what we needed at that point. I was glad I was able to do that.”

The Bearcats maintained a 5-to-7-point cushion until Virdure made a three-point play that pulled Lincoln to within four at 56-52.

With just under 5 minutes left, Northwest came up with two clutch, long-range bombs. The first came when Welty came off the screen and was ready to shoot when Pitts passed him the ball. Welty drilled the three-pointer.

“Coach always tells me to be ready to shoot,” Welty said. “I got open. He threw it to me, and I knocked it down. I couldn’t have done it without my teammates.”

Thirty seconds later, Pitts found himself open from NBA three-point range and knocked down a three-pointer that increased the Bearcats’ lead to 62-52 with 4:15 left. It was the first double-digit lead of the game for Northwest.

“That sequence was pretty good because Virdure played a heck of a game,” Pitts said. “I had to get more aggressive. I think that lead was what won the game.”

The Bearcats eventually built a 70-56 lead with under 3 minutes left. The rest of the game was Lincoln firing three-pointers and Northwest shooting free throws. The Tigers drew a little closer, but the 14-point deficit was too much for them to overcome.

“The 10-point lead helped in the end with Virdure going off,” Welty said. “That stretch there helped us.”

When the first half ended, something unusual happened to Northwest. The Bearcats went into halftime trailing 31-30. A free three by Virdure with 0.7 seconds left put Northwest behind the first time in the half.

Northwest scored the first four points to start the game, but it was obvious from the tipoff the Bearcats were in for a battle. Lincoln came out playing aggressive defense, especially on Northwest outsider shooters.

The game was tied 6-6 when Northwest managed a small cushion on a three-pointer by Ndow and two free throws from Anthony Woods.

The biggest lead by Northwest was 17-10 after D’Vante Mosby scored. Lincoln fought back and scored the next seven points and tied the game.

Powered by two strong buckets in the paint by Dougherty and another basket by Woods, Northwest built a 23-16 lead. Late in the first half, Northwest still had a six-point advantage at 28-22.

A few sloppy possessions by Northwest in the final 2 minutes allowed Lincoln to take a slim, 1-point lead into halftime. But the Bearcats didn’t allow the halftime deficit nor a boisterous crowd prevent them from having an end-of-the-game celebration.

The loss, though, didn’t stop the Lincoln pep band. The band played on.

“I always love coming here because the band and the crowd are crazy,” Pitts said. “It is something I never witnessed before.”

— Northwest Athletics —

By David Boyce

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A 16-2 spurt to start the third quarter sparked Northwest Missouri State’s women’s basketball team to a 70-60 victory over Lincoln University Thursday evening at Jason Gym.

“We needed that big push to get that lead,” said junior Tanya Meyer, who finished with a career-high 34 points.

The Bearcats have now won three of their last five MIAA games, two of them coming on the road. Last year Northwest never won a conference road game.

Northwest coach Buck Scheel was happy the way the Bearcats played for over three quarters but was disappointed how the team finished the last four minutes. Northwest held a 61-45 lead and then sputtered down the stretch.

“At the end of the game, I told our players that I don’t feel like we won,” Scheel said. “Granted it was a win, but we can’t give up. I thought with 3 or 4 minutes left, we stopped playing. You can’t do that in this conference.”

Northwest showed its mental toughness right away in the third quarter. A long three-pointer by senior Jasmin Howe tied the game at 35-35 and got the Bearcats rolling.

“I think that was big,” Howe said. “It was big to come out strong in the third quarter. We need to do that consistently the whole game.”

The Bearcats wasted little time grabbing the lead for good on a basket by sophomore Maria Dentlinger and then solidified the lead at 39-35 on a basket by Meyer.

Meyer’s field goal signaled that Lincoln was in trouble. Two quick fouls by Meyer in the first half limited her to only 6 minutes. She was well-rested and ready to go in the second half. Meyer quickly followed her two-point field goal with a three-pointer, pushing Northwest’s lead to 42-35.

After the Tigers scored a basket, Northwest got consecutive three-pointers from Howe and sophomore Mallory McAndrews that gave Northwest its first double-digit lead at 48-37.

“I was really pleased the way we came out in the second half,” Scheel said. “The third quarter and midway through the fourth quarter is what we have to feed off. When we are playing like that and firing on all cylinders, we are pretty good.”

Northwest ended the third quarter with a 50-32 lead. Meyer basically put the game away in the opening two minutes in the final quarter by making consecutive three-pointers that gave Northwest a 56-42 lead with 8:09 left.

“It was the same as coming out at halftime,” Meyer said. “We have to come out every quarter like that. I think we are improving on that. We have to keep it going. We can’t have the mental breakdowns on one end of the court.”

The Bearcats scored three more points for a 9-0 start to the fourth quarter and a commanding 59-42 lead.

In the first half, Northwest played the entire second quarter without its leading scorer and managed to go into halftime down only 35-32.

Meyer got off to a blistering start. She scored the first 12 points for Northwest, staking the Bearcats to a 12-7 lead. The advantage expanded to 15-8 when McAndrews hit a three-pointer.

The momentum shifted when Meyer picked up her second foul with a minute remaining in the first quarter. Lincoln took advantage. The Tigers scored the last seven points in the first quarter and tied the game.

“It was frustrating,” Meyer said of the early foul trouble. “It was the second game that has happened. I try to do as much as I can, talking to the players.”

Lincoln increased its lead to 21-17 early in the second quarter before Northwest regained its rhythm on offense. The Bearcats scored the next eight points and held a 25-21 lead.

The Tigers answered with a 10-0 run and moved back ahead 31-25. A three-pointer by Arbrie Benson ended the drought by Northwest. Lincoln maintained its three-point lead the rest of the second quarter.

“We definitely kept it close,” Howe said. “You never know how the game is going to go with foul trouble. You have to adapt. I think we did a good job of keeping it close with Tanya out.”

— Northwest Athletics —