ST. LOUIS, Mo.- After leading 31-24 at the end of the first half, the Missouri Baptist men's basketball team couldn't hold off the hot shooting College of the Ozarks, as the Spartans fell 68-61.
Both teams shot cold from the floor early in the first half, but with 8:00 minutes left, each of them started to find their shooting touch. The Spartans trailed for most of the half, until a three pointer made by Brandon Duswalt gave MBU an 18-16 lead.
The Bobcats regained the lead, however, as Mike Wiebe was fouled by Spartan Matt Holmes, behind the three point line, giving Wiebe three shots. The forward made 2-3 free throws, giving his team a 21-20 advantage.
That was the last lead of the half for the College of the Ozarks, as Garrison Plummer gave Missouri Baptist back the lead at 22-21, with 3:49 left on the clock. The Spartans closed out the half on a 9-3 run, leading by seven.
The defense for MBU was stellar, as the Spartans held the Bobcats to just 33% from the field, forcing 11 turnovers and out-rebounded them 18-17. Plummer and Theodore King led the team offensively with eight points apiece.
The second half, however, was a different story, with the main stat being the Bobcats got to the foul line 25 times, to the Spartans six. Missouri Baptist was holding onto their lead in the second 20:00 minutes, with their largest lead being nine.
College of the Ozarks continued to cut down at the MBU lead, and at the 10:15 mark the Bobcats took a 43-42 lead after two free throws made by Nathane Simniok. That didn't phase the Spartans, as the team got the lead back and extended it to five after a three pointer made by Jordan Walker, giving the Spartans a 50-45 advantage with 8:18 to go.
Three minutes later, it was Wiebe again tying the game at 54-54, after a two point basket. Wiebe was an unstoppable force offensively, as the Branson, Mo., native ended the night with 27 points, going 10-14 from the free throw line.
The teams' continued to share lead changes and with just 1:40 to go, the game was tied 61-61. Wiebe and the Bobcats, however, got to the foul line multiple times in the final minute, while also playing great defense, holding off MBU for the seven point victory.
On the stat line, the Spartans held College of the Ozarks to 39% from the field and had a rebounding advantage of 41-39. The Bobcats won the advantage at the free throw line, going 21-37 for the game, while MBU went just 6-8.
Missouri Baptist had four players in double-figures led by LeAndre Johnson, as the senior totaled 13 points, while adding a team high in assists and steals with four. Plummer and Adrian Kuyinu each chipped in 12 and King added 11. Beside Wiebe, the only other Bobcat to make it into double-figures was Simniok. Nathane ended the night with 23 points on 8-19 shooting and grabbed six rebounds.
The Spartans fall to 3-6 on the season, but both teams will meet again as the Spartans visit the College of the Ozarks on December 4th. Tip-off will start at 7:00 p.m.
