Joplin, Mo. – The Missouri Southern men's basketball team utilized a 24-6 run over a ten-minute span and the Lions took out Central Missouri 82-74 inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center tonight.
Southern (7-4, 3-2 MIAA) was led in scoring by
Avery Taggart as he posted a double-double with 18 points and 11 boards.
Vinson Sigmon Jr. and
Ndongo Ndaw both scored 17 points with Ndaw pulling down seven rebounds, while
Winston Dessesow scored 15.
Central (5-5, 1-3 MIAA) was led in scoring by 28 points from Gavin Pinkley.
Central opened the half on an 18-4 run and the Lions trailed 20-6 eight minutes in. Southern kept chipping away as back-to-back three's from Taggart and Dessesow cut the lead to five (24-19) with 7:52 to go.
Central led 32-24 with five minutes to play but the Lions closed the half on a 12-6 run to get within two at the break. A three from Dessesow with 2:33 to go made the score 34-32, Central, while a layup from Sigmon the next trip down tied the score at 34. A late layup from Ndaw provided the halftime tally (38-36).
The Lions opened the second half on a 12-0 run. A three-point play from Sigmon at the start of the second half gave the Lions their first lead of the game at 39-38 and a bucket from Sigmon with 18 minutes left pushed the lead to 41-38. A pair of freebies from Dessesow with 15:34 to go pushed the lead to ten (50-40).
Every time the Mules pushed with points, the Lions had an answer. A putback from Ndaw with 10:20 on the clock pushed the lead to 13 (58-45) and a three from Ndaw with 8:25 left made the score 63-49. A three from Dessesow with 3:50 on the clock made it 74-63 and a dunk from Ndaw off an assist from Sigmon gave the Lions a 79-69 lead with a minute to go.
The Lions shot 51 percent from the field and 72 percent from the free throw line. Southern had a huge advantage on the board out-rebounding the Mules 41-25, and posting a 38-22 advantage in the paint.
Southern will be off for Christmas break and the Lions will be back in action on Jan. 2 when they play host to Pittsburg State.
