KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Rogers State men's basketball's
Jabryn Anderson drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give the No. 3-seed Hillcats (23-9, 13-6 MIAA) a 59-56 win over No. 6 seed Missouri Western (18-13, 9-10 MIAA) and send them to MIAA Tournament semifinals on Friday.
"We didn't want today to be our last day together as team," said head coach
Justin Barkley. "We have had a lot of ups and a few downs this season, but in my 15 years, this is one of the most resilient teams I've coached. We have some guys who have persevered through some tough stuff this year, and adversity is firmly in our vocabulary. On that last shot, Jabyrn was the guy we wanted with the ball. He had good balance, got a good look and we were fortunate it went in!"
Four Hillcats finished in double figures.
Sam Davidson led the way with 14 points as well as three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Anderson put up 13 points and was 2-for-4 from deep with six rebounds, an assist and a steal. Both
Andrew Mason and
Caden Fry contributed 10 points apiece, with Mason adding five steals, three assists and a rebound while Fry finished two rebounds shy of a double-double with a team-high eight boards and an assist.
In a game that featured 13 lead changes and 11 ties, things were close from the outset. After the Griffons jumped out with five quick points to start, RSU answered back to tie it and eventually take their first lead at 11-10 midway through the first half. From there, the two sides traded buckets for most of the half. However, the Hillcats were able to close out the period on an 8-4 run to carry a razor-thin 29-28 advantage into the break.
RSU kept the momentum in their corner as they dashed out to their largest lead of the game at 35-30, opening the second half on a 6-2 run. MWSU did not let that stand for long as they responded with a mini 4-0 run of their own to get back within one point at 35-34 with just under 15 minutes left. From that point on, neither team got more than a four-point margin, but the Hillcats held the slight edge and held the lead for most of the period. The Griffons were only able to get back up by one point twice in the final five minutes. However, a jumper by Julius Dixon deadlocked the game at 56-56 with six seconds left. Davidson got the ball into Anderson on the opposite baseline. The junior drove the floor to just outside the arch, in front of the Hillcat bench, and knocked down the triple as time expired, punching the Hillcats' ticket to the semifinals with the 59-56 victory.
RSU will have a quick turnaround as they face off against No. 2-seed Fort Hays State tomorrow with a trip to the MIAA Tournament Championship on the line. Tipoff is set for 2:15 p.m. inside historic Municipal Auditorium.
