ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Missouri S&T Men's Basketball took down McKendree 70-62 on Thursday afternoon to advance to the GLVC semifinals on Saturday.
In a very back-and-forth first half, the Miners held a 34-30 lead at the halftime break. The two teams went score-for-score in the early minutes as it was tied 10-10 at the first media timeout.
Andrew Young (Ballwin, MO/Marquette) drained a three-pointer but was answered with three points from the Bearcats. Hayden Meakes hit a three-point shot but
Blaise Beauchamp (Minnetonka, MN/Hopkins) responded with a three-pointer made 13 seconds later.
Lovell Williams (Rogers, MN/Maple Grove) hit a three-pointer with 11:14 left in the half. However, the Bearcats went out to a three-point lead until Young tied it. McKendree once again went out to a three-point lead with 4:47 left until Young hit a three-point shot with 4:33 left in the half. Williams hit two free throws and
Zac Brown (Collinsville, OK/Collinsville) put in a layup to give S&T a 34-30 lead at halftime.
Young led the Miners with 11 points and three blocks in the first half. Williams tallied seven points and five rebounds for S&T. They outrebounded the Bearcats 17-14 and 6-1 on the offensive end in the half.
To start the second, Benassi hit two free throws and Williams put in a layup to make the score 38-30 45 seconds into the half.
Ryan Sroka (Lake in the Hills, IL/Huntley) made it an 11-point game with 13:32 left until the Bearcats drained two three-pointers to cut it to a five-point game.
McKendree made it a three-point game with 8:45 left before Williams put in a layup and Young tallied three points. Sroka gave the Miners another 11-point lead, this time with 6:09 left in the game. The Bearcats made it close at the end of the game as they were down by four with 1:16 left. Beauchamp made a jumper and
Alex Benassi (Lee's Summit, MO/Lee's Summit) hit two free throws to end the game as the Miners won 70-62.
Young picked up 17 points, five rebounds, five blocks and three steals for the Miners. Sroka had 16 points and five rebounds on 6-for-10 shooting. Williams recorded 11 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals for S&T. This game featured 13 lead changes and eight ties.
The Miners shot 41.8% in the game and 35% from three-point range. They outrebounded the Bearcats 35-32 and forced 17 turnovers. In the paint, S&T had 26 points with five blocks and 10 steals.
What's Next
The Miners advanced to the GLVC semifinals with this win. They will play the winner of the Lewis/Lincoln game on Saturday at 12 p.m. The GLVC Championship is on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Hyland Arena.
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