ST. LOUIS – No matter the venue, no matter the day, it's tough to get a win on the road in the American Midwest Conference. The Missouri Baptist Spartans found that out firsthand in front of a raucous crowd at Harris-Stowe State University on Thursday night. The Hornets led most of the second half in claiming a 76-69 victory over the Spartans.
The first 32 minutes of the game were tight as neither team could get much separation. The Spartans briefly held their largest lead of the game (9 points) with four minutes remaining in the first half, but the Hornets fought back to make is 36-33 MBU at the half.
Brendon Hardy had 8 first-half points.
The second half started much like the first with neither team able to grab control of the game. The Hornets would gain the lead for good at 43-41 with 14:46 remaining in the game, but the score would remain close for another seven minutes. When
Jadis White sank two free throws with 7:24 left the Spartans were down 57-55. It was at that point HSSU grabbed control of the game and held on. They would outscore MBU 12-2 over the next three minutes to claim a 69-57 lead with just over four minutes left. The Spartans would get two three-pointers from
Breven McMullen in the final minute to climb closer, but the Hornets hit enough of their free throws down the stretch to close out the victory.
The Spartans were outrebounded 36-26. Despite the Hornets hitting only 13 of 27 (48.1%) free throws, and seven of 20 (35%) in the second half, they built a large enough late lead that it didn't come back to haunt them. The Spartans on the other hand shot a sizzling 84% (16 of 19) from the line.
MBU had five players in double-figures, led by McMullen with 18 points. The sophomore from Park Hills, Mo. made his third consecutive start and is now averaging 17.3 points per game in that stretch. White had one of his best games of the season, finishing with a double-double on 10 points and 11 assists. White also had four steals. Joining McMullen and White in double figures were Hardy with 15 points and 11 each from
Tyrell Andrews and
Bryce Johnson.
Four Hornets did most of the scoring for HSSU, with Ken Martin finishing with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Alex Nunnally had 18 points, while O'Bray Rufus and Taj Toney both had 12 points.
The loss drops the Spartans a half-game behind first-place Columbia in the American Midwest Conference, as they are now 6-2 in the conference and 10-10 overall. Harris-Stowe improves to 4-9 overall and 3-4 in the AMC.
The Spartans will be off until next Thursday when they travel to Fulton, Mo. to take on the William Woods University Owls. Tip-off will be 7:30 p.m.
