WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Nov. 24, 2020) - The Central Missouri Mules Basketball team suffered a 67-28 loss to 21st-ranked Missouri Southern in the 70th meeting between the Mules and Lions.
Cameron Hunter led the UCM for the second-straight game with 16 points.
How it Happened:
• Both the Mules and Lions offense began on a slow start as MSSU led just 10-9 after 10 full minutes of play.
• An 11-0 run by MSSU after the 10-minute mark in the first half helped the Lions to their largest lead of the game with a 32-15 advantage over the Mules with under two minutes to play in the first half.
• Coming out of halftime with a 21-35 deficit, the Mules lessoned the Lion's lead point-by-point.
• After only scoring four points in the first half, Hunter scored eight of the Mules first nine points to begin the second half.
• Central Missouri was able to come within three points of the Lions two different times in the second half. A pair of free throws by
Gaven Pinkley brought the score to just a 52-49 MSSU lead with 7:39 left to play.
• The Lions responded to the close score with a quick 8-1 run until the final media timeout as MSSU led 58-50 with under five minutes to play.
• Every UCM bucket was matched with a Lions in return. The Mules were unable to gain an advantage over MSSU and surrendered to a 67-58 loss.
• MSSU finished 26-57 from the field for 46.2%, 6-18 for 33.3% from the three-point range, and hit just 9-14 from the foul line for 64.3%.
• The Mules responded to their 33.3% (8-24) shooting in the first half with 52.2% (12-23) shooting in the second. Altogether, UCM hit 20-47 for 42.6%, went just 6-18 from behind the arc for 33.3%, and finished 12-16 from the free-throw line for 75%.
• The Lions outrebounded the Mules 37-25 to total 17 second-chance points compared to the Mules seven.
Leading the Mules:
• Back-to-back games Hunter has led the Mules offense. The senior transfer hit 5-13 from the floor, 1-5 from the three, and 5-6 at the foul line to total 16 points against the Lions. Hunter also recorded the team-high four assists and the game-high four steals.
•
Jalen Blaize finished 5-9 from the field with three three's to record a season-high 13 points.
• Pinkley led the UCM defense with seven boards while also hitting 2-4 from the field, 1-3 from the three-point range, and a perfect 2-2 at the free-throw line to finish with seven.
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Ante Sustic also added seven points for the Mules, going 3-5 in the pain and 1-1 at the foul line.
Leading the Lions:
• MSSU's star returner Cam Martin finished 8-16 from the field, 3-4 from the three-point range, and 4-6 at the free-throw line for the game-high 23 points. Martin also led the Lions with five assists and two steals.
• Winston Dessesow recorded 15 points for the Lions hitting 6-11 with one three and a perfect 2-2 from the foul line.
• RJ Smith led the MSSU defense with nine rebounds.
News & Notes:
• In the home opener, the Mules had seven of their nine players playing their first minutes inside UCM's Multipurpose Building.
• The Mules have outscored their opponents in the second half in both games so far this season.
• UCM continues to lead the all-time series against the Mules 40-30.
Up Next:
The Mules return to action Saturday, Nov. 28th, as they host Pittsburg State in the Multipurpose Building. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. in Warrensburg, following the Jennies game.
