Big second half propels Jennies past Missouri Western, 72-58

Central Missouri State defeated Missouri Western, 72-58 in a key regional match up. The Jens won their eighth straight and clinched a finish in the top three for the second straight season.

The first half saw both teams playing good defense as the Jennies (18-7, 10-4 MIAA) committed 10 turnovers while the Griffons (17-8, 7-7 MIAA) turned it over nine times. The Jens held a 22-16 lead with a little over 5:30 to play, before MWSU closed the half on an 11-2 run to head into the half, up 27-24. CMSU was led by Tiffany Vincent's eight points in the stanza.

The Jennies opened the second half on a 16-4 run to give them a nine-point lead. The Griffons would not go quietly as they answered with a 7-0 run of their own to pull within 40-38. That was the closest MWSU would get as the Jens came right back with an 18-6 run to expand the lead to 58-44.

The Jennies shot 53.6 percent in the second half with 28 of their points coming in the paint and 13 from the free-throw line. MWSU was held to 39.3 percent from the field (11-for-28) and made 7-of-9 from the foul line. CMSU outscored the Griffons 48-31 in the second frame.

Lindsey Maple led four Jens in double figures with 20 points, Vincent added 18 and Kara Rewerts and Cydney Franklin each contributed 13. Vincent pulled down eight rebounds to lead the Jens while Rewerts dished out team-high four assists.

Missouri Western was paced by Jill Johnson and Inga Buzoka with 15 points each while Tera Petersen added 13.