Sixth-ranked Northwest Missouri State led from start to finish to defeat Wayne State College 76-58 Sunday afternoon at the 25th annual Hillyard Men’s Basketball Tip-Off Classic in St. Joseph, Mo.
The Bearcats jumped out to an 18-3 lead in the opening eight minutes of the contest and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the contest.
The Bearcats used 64 percent shooting in the first half (16-of-25) to take a 45-27 halftime lead. Sophomore forward Kendall Jacks had 13 of Wayne State’s 27 points in the first half, going 4-of-9 from the field and 4-for-6 at the free throw stripe.
Wayne State finished the game making 18-of-51 shots from the field for 35.3 percent. The Wildcats were 5-of-16 behind the 3-point line and 17-for-22 at the charity stripe.
Jacks was Wayne State’s lone double-figure scorer with 21 points, finishing 8-of-15 from the field and 4-of-6 at the foul stripe. Matt Thomas and Tony Bonner each added eight points.
Northwest Missouri State controlled the rebounding battle on Wayne State 44-27 as Xavier Kurth grabbed 11 boards for the Bearcats while Wayne State’s top rebounders were Jacks, Jordan Cornelius, Luke TerHark and Tony Bonner with three apiece.
Wayne State (1-1) will be on the road Wednesday evening playing at Division I South Dakota State in an exhibition game for the Wildcats with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
