Roadrunners split to open Region 16 schedule

December 7 Three Rivers Community College at Poplar Bluff, Missouri

The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners opened their Region 16 schedule with a hard-earned 69-66 overtime victory over the Three Rivers Community College Raiders on Wednesday, December 7 in Poplar Bluff.

The Roadrunners jumped out to a 9-2 lead with less than 16 minutes remaining in the opening half and held a one point advantage at halftime with a 31-30 score. The second half was a classic back-and-forth battle. Three Rivers led 50-45 with nine minutes and 24 seconds remaining in regulation, but the Roadrunners responded with a big run to take a 61-59 lead with just over two minutes remaining in regulation.

The Raiders fought back to tie the game at 61 with less than 30 seconds remaining. Three Rivers had an opportunity to win the game in regulation but, missed the final shot. In overtime, sophomore guard Jules Bikoy rolled in a shot in with under a minute left to give SFCC a one-point lead. SFCC forced a turnover on the ensuing possession.

SFCC shot the ball well from the free-throw line, going 15 of 16 in the second half and overtime. SFCC got a huge defensive stop with 8.8 seconds remaining to seal the big road win

Freshman guard Devon Ellis led SFCC with 25 points. Bikoy added 11 points and freshman guard Elijah Bernstein added 10 points, five assists and six steals. Sophomore wing/forward Abou Wague secured a team-high 15 rebounds.

"It was a good win for us," said Roadrunners Head Coach Matt Brown. "It's big to open a Region 16 game on the road and win it. We have one more region game at home on Saturday to close out the semester. We shot free throws very well in the second half. We also had a pretty balanced scoring effort."

December 10 Missouri State University-West Plains at Sedalia, Missouri

SFCC (6-10, 1-1 in Region 16) fell 77-67 to the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzlies inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center in Sedalia on Saturday night, December 10. The game was part of the Region 16 schedule for both teams.

West Plains led most of the game. SFCC trailed 35-30 at halftime, but battled back to trim the deficit to one point, on a pair of free throws from sophomore wing/forward Dalton Gayman with three minutes and 10 seconds remaining. However, that would be as close as SFCC would get, as West Plains made the plays necessary to earn the victory.

"We didn't do a good job of rebounding the basketball or shooting free throws," said Brown. "We had some wide-open shots around the basket that we have to make. This is a disappointing loss, because it is going to affect us down the line. We were in a position to win the game but, the bottom line is you have to rebound, make layups, and you have to make your free throws."

Bikoy led SFCC in scoring with 25 points. Ellis contributed 18 points. Gayman added 12 points.

David Rohrbach
SFCC Athletics