Roadrunners split a pair of Region 16 contests

February 14 Missouri State University-West Plains

The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners picked up a tough Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference road victory over the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzlies 60-59 in West Plains on Wednesday, February 14. The game featured eight lead changes and three ties.

West Plains took a 32-22 lead in the first half. SFCC tied the game at 32 with a big 10-point run to close the half. The Roadrunners made the plays down the stretch to secure the victory.

Sophomore guard Elijah Edwards, sophomore forward Cliff Barrow and freshman forward Isaiah Jackson all tied for the team lead with 13 points each. Freshman forward Felly Njilayi pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Freshman guard Alex Gunnels had a team-high five assists. Freshman guard Mosa Osagie blocked two shots to lead the team.

February 17 Moberly Area Community College at Sedalia

SFCC (10-16, 3-6 in Region 16) fell 82-68 to the 17^th ranked Moberly Area Community College Greyhounds on Homecoming inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center. The game was part of the Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference schedule for both teams.

Moberly took a 10-8 lead with just under 16 minutes remaining in the opening half. SFCC responded to take a 25-19 lead in front of a large crowd with six minutes and 32 seconds remaining in the half. The Roadrunners took a 35-26 lead into halftime.

The Roadrunners had a seven-point lead with 16 minutes and 30 seconds remaining in the game. The Greyhounds fought back to take a 50-46 lead with 12 minutes and 43 seconds remaining. Moberly made the plays down the stretch to extend the advantage and secure the victory.

Freshman forward Thomas Diew led the team with 22 points and eight rebounds. Jackson and freshman guard Steven Samuels scored 12 points each. Samuels led the team with four steals. Gunnels dished out a team-high five assists in the game.

"I thought we played well in spurts," said Roadrunners Head Coach Matt Brown. "I thought we played hard in the first half and for about five or seven minutes in the second half. Against a top 20 team like Moberly, you can't come up empty on the offensive end and not play well defensively. We have to do a better job of that. I thought our rebounding was the best thing we did tonight. The rebounding numbers were almost even for the entire game. I wanted to see if we would compete on the glass tonight. We cannot shoot 18% from the three-point line. We are starting to get better, and this is around the time of the year you want to be playing your best basketball."

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics