By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Granted, perennial MIAA and NCAA Division II power Northwest Missouri State is in the midst of a transition season after former Bearcat coach Ben McCollum moved on to Division I Drake following last season and took multiple Bearcats with him.
Brayden Shorter (20), celebrating a big play with Brady Christiansen, led Washburn with 18 points in Saturday's 96-66 win over Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Washburn senior Andrew Orr scored 16 points on Saturday in the Ichabods' 96-66 win over Northwest Missouri. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
But the Bearcats' tradition -- four national titles and 21 MIAA regular-season championships -- coupled with the fact that the Ichabods had dropped seven straight games to Northwest gave Washburn plenty to play for in Saturday's conference matchup.
And the Ichabods took full advantage of Northwest's inexperience and current struggles, leading for all but 19 seconds in a wire-to-wire 96-66 win in Lee Arena.
"We talk about how there's guys in our program who built us up to where we are today and they went through that Ben McCollom/Northwest era and I went through it, too,'' said Ichabod senior Andrew Orr, who moved into the No. 19 spot on Washburn's career scoring chart with 16 points.
"It feels really good to get this type of win because that's a prideful program and to beat a team of that level by that much is special.''
Ichabod coach Brett Ballard, who entered Saturday's game with a 3-18 career record against the Bearcats, agreed.
"We have a lot of respect for that program and what they've accomplished and it is a big game,'' Ballard said. "Every game is a big game, but that's a big game and that's a good win for us, a good statement win.''
Washburn, which improved to 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the MIAA, is likely to be the top-ranked team in the country for the first time since 1992 when the national rankings are released on Tuesday after previous No. 1 Nova Southeastern lost earlier in the week on the road to Palm Beach Atlantic.
Washburn jumped out to a 9-1 lead and never looked back as the Ichabods recorded their first win over Northwest since Feb. 9, 2013.
The Bearcats (4-11, 2-4) pulled within three at 13-10 with 14:39 to play in the opening half before an 11-3 WU run with points by four different Ichabods propelled Washburn to a 48-30 lead at the halftime break.
Washburn shot 59 percent in the opening half, hitting 19 of 32 shots, while holding the Bearcats to 33 percent shooting on 8 of 24 from the field.
Washburn scored 12 of the first 16 points of the second half, starting the frame 5 of 5 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers by sophomore Jack Bachelor followed by a swipe-and-steal dunk by senior Michael Keegan putting the Ichabods up 60-34 just before the first media timeout of the half.
Another 3-pointer by Washburn Rural product Bachelor pushed the lead to 27 points and Northwest would get no closer than 23 the rest of the way before the Ichabods stretched out their margin to as many as 34 with 70 seconds to play in the game.
"I'm proud that we really didn't let up,'' Ballard said. "I thought it would have been an easy game that you kind of get up and let up and I didn't really feel like we had any let up. We pretty much kept the pedal down. That was something that we had emphasized, so it was good to see that.''
All five Ichabod starters reached double figures, led by Shorter's 18 points while Orr had five rebounds to go with his 16 points.
Senior Jacob Hanna had 13 points with four steals while Bachelor had 11 points and added five assists and Keegan had 11 points and three steals.
Northwest was led by Trey Moala's 13 points and six boards.
Washburn finished 60 percent from the field, connecting on 39 of 65 shots overall, while holding the Bearcats to 39 percent at 22 of 57.
Washburn also out-rebounded the Bearcats 34-33 and forced 18 Northwest turnovers, leading to 27 Ichabod points. Washburn also outscored the Bearcats 58-32 in the paint while shooting a blistering hot 31 of 42 from the field on 2-point baskets for a 74 percent clip.
Saturday's 30-point win was the largest by an Ichabod team over Northwest since a 31-point win on March 2, 1993 in Topeka.
Washburn will be back on home Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. matchup with rival Emporia State.
The Ichabods beat the Hornets 105-77 in Emporia on Jan. 4.
WASHBURN MEN 96, NORTHWEST MISSOURI 66
NW Missouri 30 36 -- 66
Washburn 48 48 -- 96
NORTHWEST MISSOURI (4-11, 2-4)
Moala 6-11 1-2 13, Moustakas 2-6 5-7 9, Knox 0-5 0-0 0, Glock 2-3 6-8 12, Alexander 5-8 1-1 11, Gallagher 0-4 0-0 0, Ratigan 2-2 0-0 4, Byers 2-8 2-2 7, Johnson 3-10 1-1 9, Marlowe 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 22-57 17-23 66.
WASHBURN (15-0, 6-0)
Orr 7-12 2-3 16, Hanna 5-10 3-3 13, Bachelor 4-7 0-0 11, Shorter 6-12 3-4 18, Keegan 5-6 1-1 11, Ungashick 3-5 0-0 6, Christiansen 3-5 0-1 7, Claussen 4-4 1-4 9, Ruud 1-2 0-0 2, Schadegg 0-1 0-0 0, Cook 1-1 0-0 3, Parker 0-0 0-0 0, Dajani 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 39-65 10-16 96.
3-point goals -- Northwest Missouri 5-19 (Johnson 2-3, Glock 2-2, Byers 1-4, Moustakas 0-3, Knox 0-2, Gallagher 0-4, Alexander 0-1), Washburn 8-23 (Shorter 3-9, Bachelor 3-6, Christiansen 1-2, Cook 1-1, Orr 0-1, Hanna 0-1, Keegan 0-1, Ungashick 0-1, Schadegg 0-1). Rebounds -- Northwest Missouri 31 (Moala 6), Washburn 34 (Christiansen 6). Assists -- Northwest Missouri 14 (Knox 4), Washburn 18 (Bachelor 5). Turnovers -- Northwest Missouri 18, Washburn 12. Total fouls -- Northwest Missouri 15, Washburn 19. Fouled out -- none. Technical fouls -- Hanna.
