The Roadrunners traveled to West Plains on Tuesday night, Feb. 9, to take on the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzlies for a key region and conference matchup. SFCC (16-8, 3-3 in Region 16, 5-3 in the MCCAC) could not overcome the first half deficit and lost by a score of 81-73. 

West Plains led 30-13 with about six minutes remaining in the first half. The Roadrunners nearly doubled their score during that time, but the Grizzlies kept pace and led 44-25 at the midpoint of the game. 

The Roadrunners stormed out of the locker room after halftime to cut the deficit to nine points after freshman guard Willie Jimerson Jr. hit a pair of free throws about three minutes into the second half. 

"We got some stops on the defensive end," said Roadrunners Head Coach Kevin Thomas. "We rebounded and played with a bit more urgency, but we didn't sustain it. Scoring was a struggle, and their zone bothered us all night." 

The Grizzlies responded with another run of their own to push the lead back to 18. SFCC once again trimmed the deficit to 78-73 after a three-point basket from sophomore guard Joshua Bailey with 20 seconds remaining in the game. But West Plains knocked down their free throws to seal the win. 

Sophomore guard Ronnie Rousseau III led the Roadrunners in scoring with 23 points. He knocked down three three-point shots and dished out a team-high eight assists. Bailey contributed 12 points, knocking down four three-pointers. Sophomore forward Clint Robinson pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Jimerson and freshman guard William Jones tied for the team lead in steals with two. 

Coach Thomas sees one area in which SFCC must improve before the next game. 

"We are going to see a lot more zone on Saturday," said Thomas. "Moberly will be ready because they are coming off a loss. Coach Smith will have those guys ready to go. We have to do a better job of attacking the zone. We shot too many three-point shots tonight. We have to get shots going to the basket, get the ball inside and get it to the short corner." 

SFCC will wrap up their road trip on Saturday, Feb. 13, to take on the Moberly Area Community College Greyhounds in another important region and conference game. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. 

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics