Justin Pitts of Blue Springs drives past Duke freshman Wendell Carter Jr. (photo/Bearcats Athletics)
One of the “perks” for winning the Division II National Championship is the following year, the team gets to travel to the state of North Carolina to play D-I powerhouse Duke University in an exhibition basketball game. This season, Northwest Missouri State had the privilege.
The Bearcats men’s basketball team fell to Duke University, 93-60, on Friday evening at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
The Bearcats hit 12 three pointers and limited Duke to just 8-of-24 (33.3 percent) from beyond the arc. Northwest grabbed nine offensive rebounds and forced the Blue Devils into 15 turnovers. Duke had just three steals and were 5-of-9 from the charity stripe. The Bearcat bench outscored the Blue Devil bench, 25-21.
Ryan Hawkins scored a team-high 14 points with three rebounds, an assist and a steal. He was 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.Joey Witthus scored 12 points, hitting four three-pointers.
The Bearcats begin the season on Friday, Nov. 10, against Upper Iowa at 1 p.m. in St. Joseph, Mo. Northwest’s first action will be on Friday, Nov. 17, against Metro State at 7 p.m.