Oct. 29, 2011
Final Stats
Final Stats (PDF)
SPRINGFIELD -- Missouri State picked up its second men's basketball exhibition win here Saturday with a 90-49 victory over visiting William Jewell College.
Kyle Weems led all scorers with 21 points for the Bears, who won for the second time in three days, while Corey Copeland added 17. Caleb Patterson (11) and Christian Kirk (10) were also in double-figures for Paul Lusk's club which shot 53.4-percent from the field and committed just nine turnovers against a feisty Cardinal squad.
MSU built a 5-0 lead in the first minute before a dunk by Mark Mason tied the game for the visitors, 5-5, at the 17:40 mark. Jewell stayed within four points until Weems hit three straight free throws to make it 14-7 with 13:39 to go in the opening period.
Two possessions later, Kirk fired up the JQH Arena crowd of 3,125 with a two-handed dunk, and then opened up MSU's first double-figure lead two minutes later with a driving layup to make it 21-10.
Later in the first half, Copeland scored eight straight MSU points with a pair of three-pointers and layup in transition that extended the home team's lead to 49-24. The Bears used that momentum to go into the locker room leading 52-27 at the half.
The second half was much the same as the Bears held Jewell to 22 total points and forced 11 turnovers over the final 20 minutes. The Bears' biggest lead came with 1:53 to go on a traditional three-point play by Anthony Downing who scored seven in his debut performance.
Michael Bizoukas finished with 10 assists and one turnover in his second start at point guard for MSU. The DePaul transfer was was one of 10 players in the scoring column for Missouri State, which out-rebounded Jewell by a 40-24 margin.
MSU will play its third and final exhibition game of the 2011-12 season on Nov. 5 (7 p.m.) at Missouri Southern in the I-44 Challenge to benefit the Joplin recovery efforts. Tickets are $15 for reserved seats, and $10 for general admission by calling (417) 625-9366.
