Northwest Missouri State senior Hunter Henry scored a season-high 25 points and had 10 rebounds in a 79-56 loss at Emporia State Wednesday at White Auditorium. He added four assists and three steals to his 17 th career double-double.
Robert Moores hit five 3-pointers and had 23 points to lead the Hornets (5-1, 1-0), who avenged their MIAA tournament championship loss to the Bearcats (3-2, 0-1) last March. Emporia State made 10 three’s in handing Northwest its worst defeat since November of 2002.
Northwest Head Coach Steve Tappmeyer was denied in his first attempt to reach the 400-win plateau. His next chance comes Saturday at Washburn.
Northwest entered Wednesday’s game averaging 14 fouls and 15 turnovers per game. The Bearcats committed 15 fouls and had 14 turnovers in the first half against Emporia, yet held a six-point lead at one point and only trailed 34-29 at the break.
The Bearcats missed their first eight shots of the second half and trailed 45-29 before the first of back-to-back hoops by Henry ended the drought. Harris cut the lead to 10, but Emporia scored 17 of the game’s next 19 points to secure the win. Moores’ third 3-pointer gave the Hornets a 62-37 lead halfway through the second half.
Northwest and Emporia ranked first and last in the MIAA, respectively, in turnover margin entering Wednesday’s game. Northwest committed 19 turnovers to 15 for Emporia, marking the second time in the last 38 games that the Bearcats finished with more turnovers than their opponents.
