WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- The Mules led by as many as 13 points in the second half, but went cold down the stretch and fell to Washburn 58-56 on Wednesday night at the UCM Multipurpose Building. The loss drops UCM's record to 12-7 overall and 6-7 in MIAA play.
The Mules opened the second half on a 12-2 run and led 43-30 with 16:45 to play in the game, but made just five shots the rest of the way as Washburn (12-6, 8-5 MIAA) battled back for the win. The Mules went stretches of 5:23 and 6:31 without a basket after opening the 13-point lead. When
Spencer Reaves broke the drought with a jumper at the 3:52 mark it gave UCM a 49-47 lead. Washburn used a 17-4 run to tie the game before Reaves' shot and Randall Smith followed it up with another layup to re-tie the game.
The Ichabods took their first lead of the night on Brady Skeens' layup with 2:42 to play. Reaves tied the game with a pair of foul shots, but a 5-0 run gave Washburn it lead it wouldn't relinquish.
Tereke Eckwood got a steal and layup with :58 to play to pull the Mules within three and Reaves' layup with :39 left made it a one-point game. Smith made two foul shots to give WU a 58-55 lead with 12 seconds to play.
Brad Woodson was fouled with 3.5 seconds left to send him to the line. He made the first before intentionally missing the second on purpose. UCM got the rebound, but Reaves shot rolled off the rim and
Marquiez Lawrence's tip-in attempt at the buzzer was no good.
UCM opened the game on a 6-0 run on threes from Reaves and
Kyle Wolf. Wolf hit another three at the 16:31 mark and UCM led 9-2. The Mules would push the lead to 10 at 16-6 with 13:11 left in the first half. Each time, though, the Ichabods came crawling back. A 6-0 run cut the lead to four only to see UCM push the lead back to double digits at 24-14.
A three from Andy Wilson and a free throw from Jerey Lickteig made it a six point UCM lead, but Wolf drained another three and then scored on a layup to give the Mules a 29-18 lead with 4:20 left in the first half. The Ichabods closed the first half on a 10-2 spurt to pull within 31-28 at the intermission.
Reaves led UCM with a game-high 18 points, while Wolf added 15. The Mules shot 38 percent for the game, going 22-of-57, but shot just 33 percent in the second half. The Mules were 9-of-26 from three-point range for 34 percent and struggled at the foul line, making a season-low three of 11 attempts for a season-low 27 percent.
Smith led three Ichabods in double figures with 16 points. Skeens added 14 and Wilson had 10. WU was 22-of-52 from the field for 42 percent, but just 3-of-12 from beyond the arc. The 'Bods made 11-of-18 free throws for 61 percent.
UCM forced 18 Washburn turnovers, but committed 17 of their own. WU outscored UCM 36-24 in the paint and held a 43-32 advantage in rebounding.
The Mules look to end their two-game skid on Saturday afternoon when they host Emporia State at 3:30 p.m. at the Multi. The game can be heard live on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar and warrensburgradio.com with Greg Hassler on the call.
