COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – The Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzly Basketball team faced one its toughest tests of the young season this past weekend, and they passed in impressive style.
The Grizzlies defeated NJCAA preseason No. 20 Iowa Western Community College 99-85 in Council Bluffs on the first night of the Holiday Inn/Hampton Inn Reiver Classic to keep their record unblemished at 5-0.
While pleased with the win Friday night, Grizzly Basketball Head Coach Chris Popp is keeping things in perspective. “It’s too early in the season to get too far ahead, but at the same time, I feel like we’re going in the right direction,” he said. “We’ve got a long way to go, and we’re going to have to get a lot better.”
FIRST HALF
Sophomore forward Yannis Mendy got the ball rolling for the Grizzlies, coming out of the gates and establishing a presence inside to score 9 of the Grizzlies’ first 13 points. “Yannis just continues to improve,” Popp said. “When he plays with a scoring mentality, he is hard to guard.”
The game stayed tight between the two evenly-matched teams through the first 10 minutes until freshman guard Eric Lovett made three consecutive 3-point shots to help the Grizzlies pull away. By the end of the half, the Grizzlies were up 49-39.
SECOND HALF
The Reivers battled back in the second to take a brief lead midway through the period, but sophomore point guard Ricky Torres took control of the contest for the Grizzlies, scoring 16 of his team-leading 22 points to help secure the win.
“When the Reivers made their run and went ahead, Ricky took it to another level and really controlled the game down the stretch,” Popp said.
Torres was one of five Grizzlies scoring in double figures. Mendy and freshman forward Dontell Brown each had 19 points, redshirt freshman guard Radshad Davis added 17, and Lovett finished the contest with 15.
“Offensively, that’s the exciting thing about this team. We can score in a lot of different ways and with a lot of different people,” Popp said.
Davis led the team in rebounds with nine. “Radshad was big on the boards. He had nine rebounds, but probably had four or five more he tipped that we ended up with. Those extra possessions are crucial in games like this,” the coach said.
EXTRAORDINARY EFFORT
Popp also praised the play of freshman forward Burone Edwards who, despite a stomach bug, turned in a strong defensive effort that helped the Grizzlies keep the Reivers under control.
“His was a huge performance that most people will overlook. He had been sick for two days, hardly eaten and was short of breath, but he was not going to let me bench him. If he hadn’t played, it would have been hard for us to win. We have to have his defense and rebounding,” the coach said. “He couldn’t play long stretches, and he was 0-5 from the floor, but he was a warrior and played hard.”
GRACELAND
On Saturday afternoon, the Grizzlies defeated the Graceland University junior varsity Yellowjackets squad from Lamoni, Iowa, 105-63.
“Graceland played a lot of zone and did some other things we haven’t seen much of,” Popp said. “It was a game where we were able to get some additional experience.”
Six Grizzlies scored in double figures. Mendy led with 18 points and added 13 rebounds for a double-double performance. Brown had 16 points, Torres and Lovett 15 each, freshman point guard Johde Campbell 12, and freshman guard Niekie Thomas 11.
TUESDAY VS. LINK YEAR
The Grizzlies return home Tuesday, Nov. 14, for a 7 p.m. contest against the Link Year Prep Lions of Branson in Joe Paul Evans Arena at the West Plains Civic Center.
For complete statistics of the Grizzlies’ games this season, visit http://stats.njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2017-18/div1/teams/missouristateuniversitywestplains. For more information about the Grizzly Basketball program, visit the team’s website, http://wp.missouristate.edu/grizzly/bb/, or call 417-255-7991.
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