WEST PLAINS, Mo. – With just over three minutes remaining in the game, it looked as if a homecoming victory wasn’t in the cards for the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzly Basketball team Saturday night.
The Grizzlies were down 16 points to their Region 16 rival, Three Rivers College, Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and time was ticking off the clock fast. But a series of successful free throws and easy transition buckets helped the Grizzlies close the gap and nab an exciting 83-81 victory in Joe Paul Evans Arena at the West Plains Civic Center.
“This has to be one of the most exciting wins in the history of the program,” Grizzly Basketball Head Coach Yancey Walker said. “To come back the way we did is as much indescribable as it was incredible. Being down that much with that little amount of time and to rally and come back is a credit to these young men.”
The Grizzlies started the game hot, going up 7-2 in the contest’s early minutes, but the Raiders proved why this pairing of teams is one of the most competitive in Region 16 year in and year out. They went on a scoring run that put them up by 12 points midway through the first half and 14 points with six minutes remaining in the period. By halftime, the Grizzlies had narrowed that gap to single digits, going into the break down 27-36.
In the second half, the Raiders regained a double digit lead early and built it to the 16-point difference before the Grizzlies finally pulled together the plays needed to come from behind for the win.
“The game never had a great feel to it,” Walker said. “We would have two or three good possessions on offense then get stagnant, then that cycle would repeat. I think part of that was the fact that our internal clock was ticking, and we felt like we needed to score faster.
“We finally got some easy baskets in transition, and we finally knocked our free throws down at the rate we are accustomed to. We knew we could turn them over, but it took a lot longer than it should have.”
Overall, the Grizzlies hit 24 of 51 shots from the field for 47.1 percent, six of 20 attempts from 3-point range for 30 percent, and 29 of 37 shots from the charity stripe for 78.4 percent. In addition, they had 25 rebounds, 17 assists and 17 turnovers. Leading scorers were sophomore guard Jameel Moore with 22 points, followed by sophomore guard Craig Eubanks with 18, freshman forward Terrel Martin-Garcia with 13, and freshman guard Dazhonetae Bennett with 10.
The Raiders hit 28 of 56 shots from the field for 50 percent, five of 13 attempts from 3-point range for 38.5 percent and 20 of 35 shots from the free throw line for 57.1 percent. They also had 36 rebounds, 13 assists and 17 turnovers. Leading scorers were Torry Butler with 23 points, Justas Furmanavicius 20, Brian Patterson 15 and Jemeero Spain 14.
Walker said he would like to thank the Ozark Horse Trader for sponsoring the game and for helping the Grizzlies promote their remaining games in that publication. “We appreciate their help and the help of all of our sponsors,” the coach said.
In addition to the game, the 2015 Missouri State-West Plains Homecoming King and Queen were crowned at halftime. Taking the king honors was sophomore Lance Parker, Dixon, Missouri, who was crowned by the 2014 Homecoming King Zach Collins, Willow Springs. Parker represented the Grizzly Cheer Team.
Sophomore Emily Yeager, Dora, was crowned 2015 Homecoming Queen by last year’s queen, Brady Peterson, West Plains. Yeager, who represented the Tri-Lambda student spirit club, also received a bouquet of roses from Missouri State-West Plains Chancellor Drew Bennett.
Walker reminded fans to tune into the new “Above the Rim” streaming live video segment at 10 a.m. every Monday at www.ihigh.com/msuwestplains to learn the latest news on the Grizzlies as they continue their march through the 2014-15 season. Those who cannot tune in live can view the segment later in the archives of the website. Fans also may ask Walker questions through Twitter by using the hashtag #GrizzlyTalk, or they may e-mail questions to AboveTheRim@MissouriState.edu.
For more information about the Grizzly Basketball program, visit the team’s website at http://wp.missouristate.edu/grizzly/bb.htm or call the Grizzly Basketball office at 417-255-7993. Complete game statistics can be found at http://stats.njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2014-15/div1/teams/missouristateuniversitywestplains.