JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzly Basketball team will play for its first NJCAA Region 16 Championship in seven years after defeating 11th-ranked Moberly Area Community College 89-88 in a thrilling semifinal game Thursday night at Lincoln University in Jefferson City.
The Grizzlies (24-8), seeded fourth in the region tournament, will face the third seeded Mineral Area College Cardinals (23-8) from Park Hills at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 3, at Lincoln University’s Jason Gym. The Cardinals defeated second seeded State Fair Community College, Sedalia, 76-64 in the other semifinal game Thursday.
“Our guys came ready,” Grizzly Basketball Head Coach Chris Popp said of the win. “Our energy was better than it’s been all year. Our guys were confident. They knew they could play with that team.”
LAST-MINUTE HEROICS
Unlike their two previous meetings this season, Thursday’s game came down to the wire. After falling behind by 10 points midway through the second half, the Grizzlies slowly clawed their way back to take a 2-point lead on a conventional 3-point play by freshman guard Eric Lovett with 43 seconds remaining.
Moberly quickly knotted the score 86-86 on the next possession, but sophomore point guard Ricky Torres came back to put the Grizzlies up again on a 2-point bucket with 30 seconds remaining. A foul by Lovett on the next play sent Moberly to the free throw line, where the Greyhounds knotted the score for the seventh and final time of the game.
The Grizzlies came back down the court and, following a time out, set up a back screen play to Torres, who was fouled on his shot. Torres hit the first of two free throws to put the Grizzlies up for good, as a last-second shot by Moberly on the following possession fell short.
“Good individual defense kept Moberly from hitting that last shot,” Popp said. “Moberly played well. They were tough and aggressive, just like they always are. It was just a great game.”
MOTIVATION
Popp admitted the Grizzlies may have been a little more motivated following their 100-82 loss to the Greyhounds in the regular season finale Feb. 24.
“Saturday’s loss definitely added to it, but foul trouble disrupted that game,” he said. “It was a tied game when foul trouble hit us in the second half. Our guys knew they could play with them.”
THE GAME PLAN
Successfully executing their game plan also played a role in the win. “There are definite areas you have to be good in to have a chance with Moberly,” Popp explained. “You must take care of the ball, guard the 3-point line and find a way to keep them off the glass. That is easier said than done, though.”
After allowing the Greyhounds to grab 11 offensive rebounds in the first half, the Grizzlies hit the boards hard and held the Greyhounds to just three offensive grabs in the second half.
They also guarded the 3-point line well, holding Moberly to just six of 24 from behind the arc for 25 percent.
“There weren’t a lot of adjustments to be made going into the game. It was more about executing what we knew needed to be done against Moberly,” Popp said. “We communicated, we stayed on the same page with what we were doing. That’s the most focused we’ve been. That game reminded me of our Indian Hills game at home. We were locked in.”
SCORING
Four Grizzlies scored in double figures, led by Lovett with 24 points, 12 of which came from behind the arc. Torres followed with 19, redshirt freshman guard Radshad Davis added 17, and freshman forward Burone Edwards contributed 12.
“Eric played his best game of the year and continues to get better. Beyond scoring, he’s playing harder, faster and on both ends of the court. He finished with 24 points and seven rebounds, including three offensive,” Popp said.
“Ricky played virtually the entire game,” the coach added. “He’s a bit banged up, but was a warrior. Radshad didn’t play his greatest offensive game, but he had clutch free throws and big rebounds when we needed stops. Burone also stood out and was very active and aggressive, scoring 12 points and grabbing six rebounds.”
Popp expects another good game Saturday against the Cardinals for the championship. “Mineral Area played the hardest I’ve seen them play last night. It’s post-season, and everyone’s going to give it their best shot. Our best shot is just going to have to be better than theirs,” he said.
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 or call 417-255-7991.
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