ST. LOUIS – [Box Score] The 2015 portion of the schedule got started on the right foot, as the Missouri Baptist men's basketball team out-sprinted Harris-Stowe, 84-76. The Spartans picked up the first American Midwest Conference victory of the season.
Missouri Baptist (2-11, 1-5 AMC) shot .383 in the contest, making 23-of-60 from the field. The Spartans hit 7-of-18 from deep territory, but hit the free throws down when it counted the most. MBU made 31-of-44 from the charity stripe.
Harris-Stowe (2-10, 1-5 AMC) shot just over .400 in the contest, as they made 26-of-64 from the floor. The Hornets made just 4-of-14 from 3-ball land, but made 20-of-28 from the free throw line.
The Spartans won the rebounding battle, 45-41, and both teams pulled down 17 offensive boards.
Junior guard Stephen Buckner II torched the Hornets with a career-high 31 points in the contest to lead MBU. He did it all in the victory. Buckner made 9-of-12 from the floor, 3-of-5 from deep range, and 10-of-13 from the charity stripe. Buckner also pulled down six rebounds, dished three assists, and ripped four steals. The 31 points are tied for the fourth-highest single-game point total in the AMC this season.
Sophomore guard Chris Buzzell made 6-of-17 from the floor, 3-of-7 from deep range, and 8-of-11 from the free throw line en route to 23 points. He also posted four steals.
Sophomore Stanley Eboh and junior James King teamed-up for 15 rebounds to lead the Spartans. Eboh led MBU with eight boards, while King pulled down seven boards, with four in the offensive zone.
The Spartans wasted no time getting the new year going strong, as Missouri Baptist jumped to an 11-0 lead over the first 3:38 of the contest.
Buzzell splashed a three-ball with 13:07 left in the half to extend the lead to 25-6 and the Spartans would not look back.
Bryce Weibrecht later made both free throws to give Missouri Baptist its largest lead of the half at 35-15, with 5:34 left in the half.
Harris-Stowe used a 9-0 run over the next 3:08 to cut the deficit to 35-24, but the Spartans would end the half with a 14-point advantage at 40-26.
Buckner and Buzzell lead all scorers with 13 points at the break. Buckner scored ten of those points in the first five minutes of the contest.
The Spartans shot .382 over the first 20 minutes of play, while limiting the Hornets to a dismal .233 percentage from the floor. The Spartans also forced HSSU into 14 turnovers.
Missouri Baptist maintained a double-digit lead for over 16 minutes of the second half, until the Hornets hit a layup with 3:41 left in the game to cut the Spartan lead to 72-63.
Harris-Stowe cut the deficit to just two possessions with under a minute to play, but the Spartans gobbled-up an offensive rebound after running the shot clock down to one second. The Hornets were forced to foul and the Spartans made the free throws. Buckner made all four free throw attempts in the final minute, while Kuyinu sank 4-of-6 down the stretch. The final horn sounded with the Spartans on top, 84-76.
Missouri Baptist will look to earn its second AMC win of the season when it hosts St. Louis College of Pharmacy on Tuesday.
