Hannibal, Mo.- The Spartans were back on the road to take on the Hannibal-LaGrange University Trojans. This was the last of the regular season road games for MBU, and they were looking to end it on a high note before wrapping up things at home this week against Williams Baptist and Central Baptist.
Despite the Trojans picking up the first points of the game, the Spartans were off to a good start. They quickly gained possession of the ball and took control from then on. The next ten minutes the Spartans put up 20 points in a row, gaining a 17-point lead.
Nico Hill kicked off the Spartans run with a jump shot right over the top of his defender. The senior brought down an offensive rebound and while initially looking to pass it out, he took his chance to sink a basket. Hill then proceeded to knock down three three-pointers, making up 11 points of the Spartans 20-point run.
Everyone was getting in on the scoring run.
Connor Redrow sank a layup after grabbing an offensive rebound of his own.
Courtland Soll drove in to the free throw line and sank a jumper to add two points to the board.
Keyyaun Batchman got on the board with a three pointer after receiving a screen from Redrow and taking the shot after making his way into open space. A couple of Spartans also knocked down a couple of free throws. Both
Evan Palmquist and
Nick Wasilewski made one apiece.
The Trojans eventually began to put up points, but the Spartans early lead led to a gap they couldn't overcome. The second half did not go as smoothly as the first. The Spartans were facing off against a team that refused to back down, but they were up for the challenge. MBU almost doubled their score in the second, only a point shy of what they scored in the first.
McMullen kicked things off with a three-pointer coming from the corner, just ten seconds in. The teams went back and forth, each making baskets until the Spartans were able to go on a seven-point run. A big three pointer from Batchman and a set of free throws coming from
Nico Hill and
D'Mari Wiltz would be the last time they really started to pull away in the half. After that, it was a fight for control of the game.
Free throws were key in the second half, with the Spartans stepping up to the line to shoot 20. MBU was on it as the team shot a combined 80 percent from the line, making 16 of the 20. Multiple Spartans stepped up to make both of their free throw attempts while Soll went 4-4.
Overall, the Spartans standout performance in the first half and their efforts in the second, led to a solid gap that HLGU couldn't overcome. MBU would close out the game with a score of 87-68. Multiple Spartans put up double digits against the Trojans with
Nico Hill leading the team with 16. Both
Keyyaun Batchman and
Breven McMullen put up 14 points apiece.
Mujtaba Alkhaldi was only a couple steps behind with 12 points and
Evan Palmquist totaled 11.
Next up Missouri Baptist will be taking on Williams Baptist on Thursday (Feb. 22) at 7:30 PM, for their second to last game of the regular season.
