(WARRENSBURG, Mo.) – The Mules took their season high six-game win streak to Maryville on Monday, Jan. 15, to attempt to hand the fourth ranked Northwest Missouri State Bearcats their second loss of the season. The game was originally scheduled Jan. 11, but inclement weather prevented the Mules from making the trip to Maryville.
The Bearcats displayed another side of their dominance this season by going punch for punch with the Mules in the first half before pulling way in the second to secure a 70-61 victory and regular season sweep of the Mules.
The first half was a slugfest that saw the Mules up by two points at the two-minute mark. Both teams shot the ball with confidence with identical marks of 63 percent. In the final two minutes, the Bearcats capitalized on poor shooting from the Mules and went on a 5-0 run to take a 34-31 lead into the locker room.
Spencer Reaves and D.J. Richardson led the Mules with 10 and seven points in the first half. While Justin Pitts kept his team in the game with 12 and pushed that total to 30 by the game’s end. Richardson finished with 17 points, a team high, he was also 3-4 from beyond the arc. Reaves cooled down and only managed four points in the second half, but pulled down five rebounds and added five helpers. Jakob Lowrance contributed 14 points and was one rebound shy of a double-double.
The Bearcats didn’t forget about the 5-0 run they started in the first half and came out swinging to push the run to 12-0. Starting being down three, the Mules faced the first double digit deficit of the game just two minutes into the half. After a 5-0 run of their own, the Mules couldn’t keep up with the superb shooting of the Bearcats who eventually pushed the lead to 16 points. Beyond their own shooting performance, the Bearcat defense held the Mules under 50 percent shooting with only 17 attempts.
The six-game winning streak ended, marking the fourth losing meeting with the Bearcats for the Mules. However, this winning streak began with a loss to Northwest, so it’s not crazy to think another can start.
The Mules will be in action this week at 7:30 p.m. when Lincoln comes to town Thursday. The Mules will then host Lindenwood with tip scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Saturday.