Mules Win Third Straight, Down Bronchos By 10

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Feb. 1, 2018)-- All five starters scored in double figures for Mules Basketball as they took down the Central Oklahoma Bronchos, 74-64, Thursday night the Multipurpose Building. Central Missouri, winners of three-straight, improves to 17-4 overall and is now 9-3 in MIAA play.

How It Happened
 • The Mules shot an even 50% from the floor (23-46), while going 8-22 from three-point range for 36.4%. Free throws once again help the Mules late in the game and they finished 20-25 from the line for 80.0% on the night.
• The Bronchos (14-7, 7-5 MIAA) were held to 64 points on 25-57 made baskets (43.9%), and finished 7-21 from beyond the arc for 33.3%. They took 14 less free throws than UCM and connected on seven for 63.6%.
• Defense played a role early in the game as the two teams combined for just nine points in the first five minutes of action. Trailing 4-2 with 17:17 to play in the half, the Mules outscored the Bronchos 12-4 to grab a 14-8 lead at the midway point.
• UCM grabbed its first double-digit lead, 25-15, with 7:17 to play in the first half thanks to a deep three pointer by Jakob Lowrance. UCM put up 10 more points before halftime and held UCO to eight in the final 7:17 to take a 35-23 lead into the break.
• Both teams had nine turnovers in the first half, but the difference maker was the Mules shooting and defense. They went 11-20 from the floor and 6-13 from deep for 55% and 50% respectively. They held the Bronchos to 38.5% shooting (10-26) and allowed just one made triple on seven attempts.
• UCM maintained its double figure lead for the majority of the night and had its largest at 16, 48-32, with 15:48 to play in the game.
• The Bronchos kept the game interesting with a 7-0 run to cut their deficit to eight, 59-51, with 7:39 to play. Despite their efforts they never managed to get any closer than six points in the final five minutes.
• Points in the paint and late free throws came up big for the Mules in the second half. In the paint, the Mules outscored the Bronchos 20-14, and in the final five minutes of play they went 5-6 from the charity strip to seal the game.
• UCO won the rebounding battle, 33-28, and both teams combined for 30 points in the paint. UCM had two less turnovers 14-12, and notched six steals, three more than UCO.

It Was Over When...
• UCO got within six, 65-59, with 2:23 to play thanks to 5-0 run and built some momentum. Matt Wilkinson once again stepped up for the Mules and drove the lane and got a tough shot to fall and drew contact for the and-1 attempt. His three-point play gave the Mules a nine-point lead yet again and free throws by him and Blake Spellman in the final 1:00 help ice the game for good.

Mules Stat Leaders
• Wilkinson led the way scoring 17 points on 6-11 of shooting and was 2-5 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed a team-best seven rebounds.
• Spellman put 15 points without missing a single shot. He finished 5-5 from the floor, including 3-3 from three-point range, and was 2-2 at the free throw line. He also handed out two assists and had two steals. 
• Lowrance added 13 points while going 4-8 from the floor. He was 4-4 at the free throw line and pulled down five boards.
• Spencer Reaves had 11 points for UCM. He was just 2-8 from the field, but created opportunities for free throws and went 7-8 from the line. He grabbed three rebound and dished out two assists. 
• DJ Richardson chipped in 10 points while grabbing four rebounds. He also had game-high three steals.
• Clarence Smith scored six points off the bench in 17 minutes of action.

For the Bronchos
• Marqueese Grayson scored game-high 19 points and finished 7-13 from the field. He pulled down five rebounds and had two assists, but turned the ball over four times.
• Corbin Byford added 11 points and grabbed a game-high eight boards. he also tallied a block shot and two steals.
• Marquis Johnson also chipped in 11 points and pulled down four rebounds.
• Jake Hammond scored eight points and matched the game-high in rebounds with eight as well.

News and Notes
• This is the first time all season the Mules had all five starters scored in double figures. The previous mark was four, which they have accomplished five times, most recently at Washburn on back Jan. 27.
• Wilkinson's 17 points are a new career-high. His previous best was 16 points, which he scored earlier this season against Missouri Valley College on Dec. 30, 2017. It is his fourth game this season scoring in double-figures and second straight.
• Richardson tallied three steals for the sixth time this season. It is his first game with three steals since doing so on Dec. 16, 2017 against Southwest baptist earlier this season. 
• Reaves 11 points puts his career total at 1,199, which is 14th most on the Mules all-time career scoring list. He needs one more point to reach 1,200 and 12 more points to move up to 13th on the list.
• Lowrance has now scored 10-plus points in 13 consecutive games this season.
• The Mules are now 8-8 all-time against the Bronchos.

Up Next
• The Mules will remain home this weekend as they face another Oklahoma school in the Northeastern State RiverHawks on Saturday, Feb. 3. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. in the Multi.