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THE 2017-18 GRIZZLY BASKETBALL team at Missouri State University-West Plains includes, front row from left, Erik Nvagbara, Kharkiv, Ukraine; Nieke Thomas, Springfield; Johde Campbell, Leicester, England; Ricky Torres, Pinellas Park, Fla.; Radshad Davis, Nassau, Bahamas; Terrell Whitaker, Pinellas Park, Fla.; Montel Stewart, Palm Bay, Fla.; and Eric Lovett, Union City, Ga. Second row: Evan White, Florissant; managers Marcus Golden and Eric Stafford, both of St. Louis; Head Coach Chris Popp; managers Jordan Cook, St. Louis, and Bennett Sandwell, Springfield; and Derrick Roberson, Springfield. Back row: Mykyta Drugachonok, Odessa, Ukraine; Yannis Mendy, Metting, France; Leo Kontopoulos, Frankfurt, Germany; Greyson Smallwood, Portland, Ore.; Dontell Brown, Lexington, Ky.; Kenyon Stone, Bowie, Md.; and Burone Edwards, San Antonio, Texas. (Missouri State-West Plains Photo)
THE 2017-18 GRIZZLY BASKETBALL team at Missouri State University-West Plains includes, front row from left, Erik Nvagbara, Kharkiv, Ukraine; Nieke Thomas, Springfield; Johde Campbell, Leicester, England; Ricky Torres, Pinellas Park, Fla.; Radshad Davis, Nassau, Bahamas; Terrell Whitaker, Pinellas Park, Fla.; Montel Stewart, Palm Bay, Fla.; and Eric Lovett, Union City, Ga. Second row: Evan White, Florissant; managers Marcus Golden and Eric Stafford, both of St. Louis; Head Coach Chris Popp; managers Jordan Cook, St. Louis, and Bennett Sandwell, Springfield; and Derrick Roberson, Springfield. Back row: Mykyta Drugachonok, Odessa, Ukraine; Yannis Mendy, Metting, France; Leo Kontopoulos, Frankfurt, Germany; Greyson Smallwood, Portland, Ore.; Dontell Brown, Lexington, Ky.; Kenyon Stone, Bowie, Md.; and Burone Edwards, San Antonio, Texas. (Missouri State-West Plains Photo)

Grizzlies reach Region 16 semifinals, face rematch with Moberly

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WEST PLAINS, Mo. – The Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzly Basketball team will get another chance at the nation’s 11th-ranked team Thursday, March 1, when they face Moberly Area Community College in the semifinals of the Region 16 Championship Tournament in Jefferson City.

The Grizzlies (23-8), seeded fourth in the tournament, earned that shot with a 102-86 win over fifth seeded Three Rivers College, Poplar Bluff, in the tournament’s play-in game Tuesday at the West Plains Civic Center.

Thursday’s game will tip off at 6 p.m. in Jason Gym on the campus of Lincoln University. If they win, the Grizzlies will advance to the championship game at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 3, at the same location.

WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO REACH CHAMPIONSHIP

It will take another half like the second half of Tuesday’s game for the Grizzlies to have a chance at reaching that championship game, Grizzly Basketball Head Coach Chris Popp said.

“The guys came out with the right mindset in the second half and made a push right away,” he explained. “We had a 6-point lead going into halftime, and we slowly built on that lead in the second half. We won that half from beginning to end. It wasn’t a case of one team making a run, then another.

“We were up 19 at their place and allowed them to get back in the game. That didn’t happen this time,” he continued. “I’m proud of our guys for that. They didn’t let up.”

OVERCOMING A SLOW START

The Grizzlies got a slow start in Tuesday’s game, allowing the Raiders to go up by as much as 5 points early. From there, it became a back-and-forth battle until the Grizzlies began building a small lead late in the period. At the break, the Grizzlies led 52-46.

“We missed some shots early, allowed a few offensive rebounds, and we gave them some open looks from the three. That was the difference in the first half,” Popp said.

The Raiders hit five of 11 attempts from 3-point range in that period to keep the game close.

“The 3-point line is the great equalizer,” Popp said. “It allowed them to stay right there in the first half. It wasn’t a matter of making adjustments at the half as it was to re-emphasize some things we were supposed to be doing.”

The Grizzlies made those minor corrections in the second half, including guarding the 3-point line better, which allowed them to pull away for good. The Grizzlies also rebounded better and did a better job handling the ball throughout the game.

“We had 18 offensive rebounds Tuesday, that’s huge. That’s 18 more offensive possessions,” Popp pointed out. “We also kept our turnovers down to 12, which is what it really should be around game in and game out. If we can do those two things Thursday, it puts us in a good position (to win).”

TOP SCORERS

Six Grizzlies scored in double figures, including all five starters. Sophomore point guard Ricky Torres led the way with 23 points. He was followed by redshirt freshman guard Radshad Davis with 21, sophomore forward Yannis Mendy 16, freshman forwards Dontell Brown 14 and Burone Edwards 13, and freshman guard Eric Lovett 11.

Davis turned in another double-double performance by adding 10 rebounds and six assists to his stats, and Torres continued building his all-time career assists record for the Grizzlies by adding seven to that tally.

“Both Radshad and Ricky were great,” Popp said. “Radshad just continues to do what he does. He’s so consistent. Ricky really controlled the game and shot the ball well. Those two have to be good, and they were. They’re obviously a big key for us.”

“Yannis also set the tone for us early. He was aggressive to score,” Popp added. “Burone is looking more and more like his old self. He’s starting to play some of his best basketball for us.”

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.

Stay up to date with Grizzly Athletics and Grizzly Booster Club news by signing up for text alerts at http://remind.com/join/wpgrizz or text “@WPGrizz to 81010.