BOX SCORE
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Missouri Western's Griffons made 15 3-pointers and dominated Drury on the boards to knock off the No. 12 Panthers 91-84 in the High Desert Classic here on Friday night.
Justin Taylor, a junior guard, hit 7 of 9 shots - all from 3-point range - and scored 22 points to lead the Griffons, who made 15 of 30 attempts from behind the line (50 percent) and hit 55 percent on all shots (32 of 58) for the contest.
Western also grabbed a commanding 37-22 edge on the boards as Drury (7-2) was outrebounded for just the second time this season.
"Hats off to Western ... they came in here with a lot better oomph in their step than we did," Drury coach Steve Hesser said. "They did a good job of executing their scheme ... they've got some athletes at the guard position, and they do a good job of getting in there and kicking the ball out.
"Rebound is want-to ... positioning and want-to. The best rebounders in the game have never been the biggest guys or most athletic ... it's embarrassing and a disgrace, and I'm going to do my best to fix it."
The Panthers started strong, grabbing a 23-15 lead over the Griffons in the game's first eight minutes before Western went on a 15-0 run to go on top for good and hold a 50-42 advantage by halftime on the strength of 9-of-15 shooting from 3-point range.
Marcus Rhodes had 12 points (on 5 of 6 shooting) in the opening half, while Quentin Noblin and Taylor sank three 3-pointers each in the first 20 minutes. Western also grabbed an 18-8 advantage on the boards over the Panthers in the opening half.
Dominique Long had a season-high 19 points to lead the Panthers. Alex Hall finished with 16 points, Dennon Mitchell had 14 points and four steals and Chase Elliott had 10 points each for DU, which committed just 11 turnovers to 19 by the Griffons, but couldn't overcome the rebounding deficit and the hot shooting by Western.
"It's one thing to lose ... if you go out there and compete and do things you're supposed to, sometimes the other team is just better," Hesser said. "But when you don't go out and fulfill your assignments and don't play with full effort, it's inexcuseable, and I'm responsible."
Western, which improved to 7-2, got 20 points from Rhodes, 12 points from Quentin Noblin and 11 points from Martin Nolan.
Drury returns to action Saturday in the High Desert Classic, taking on Northwest Missouri State in a 6:15 p.m. (CST) start that will also be broadcast live on JOCK 98.7 FM (www.jock987.com). The Bearcats are 5-4 after losing 97-88 to C.W. Post on Friday.
Box Score