Roadrunners close regular season with split at home

February 28 Three Rivers Community College at Sedalia

The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners picked up a critical 81-76 victory over the Three Rivers Community College Raiders inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center on Wednesday, February 28. The game was part of the Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference schedule for both teams.

SFCC led 25-17 with less than eight minutes remaining in the opening half and maintained the eight-point lead at halftime. The Roadrunners pushed it to 43-30 in the second half. The 13-point advantage was the largest lead held by either team in the contest.

Three Rivers trimmed the lead to 48-41 with about 16 minutes remaining in the contest. The Raiders cut the lead to 50-48 with 13 minutes and 38 seconds remaining. SFCC made just enough plays down the stretch to secure the victory, including knocking down several key free throws late in the game to secure the win.

"That was a good win for us," said Roadrunners Head Coach Matt Brown. "It allows us to finish third in the Region. I challenged some of our guys who hadn't played a lot all year. I thought Steven Samuels was good in the first half. Elijah Edwards was really good in the second half. I also thought Mosa Osagie was really good. He had 12 points and 14 rebounds in the game. I'm happy for our guys. It was a gutsy win."

Edwards led four Roadrunners in double-figures scoring with 20 points, including four of six three-point shots and six of eight from the free-throw line. Samuels contributed 17 points. Freshman forward Isaiah Jackson added 15 points. Freshman guard Mosa Osagie recorded a double-double with 12 points and a team-high 14 rebounds. Freshman guard Alex Gunnels dished out a team-high five assists. Sophomore forward Cliff Barrow led the team in steals with two.

March 2 Missouri State University-West Plains at Sedalia

SFCC (11-18, 4-8, in Region 16) dropped a hard-fought 79-73 Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference game in overtime to the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzlies inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center on Sophomore Night in Sedalia.

SFCC got out to an 18-11 lead with just under 13 minutes remaining in the opening half, before West Plains tied the game at 37 \at halftime.

SFCC led 44-41 with about 17 minutes remaining in the second half. West Plains fought back to take the lead at 53-51 with nine minutes and 44 seconds remaining in the second half. The game was tied at 61 with four minutes and 25 seconds remaining in regulation. Both teams continued to battle as they had all evening. The game was tied again at 65 with about 31 seconds remaining in the second half.

SFCC got a big defensive stop on the final offensive possession for West Plains, however SFCC missed a shot in the final seconds that would've won the game in regulation to set up overtime.

The Grizzlies made the plays in overtime to secure the hard-fought victory.

Edwards led three Roadrunners in double figures scoring with 19 points. Barrow contributed 16 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Freshman forward Thomas Diew added 14 points. Gunnels dished out a team-high four assists and led the team in steals with three.

SFCC honored Davide Berozzi, James Munlyn, Elijah Edwards, and Cliff Barrow in a pregame ceremony.

"We wanted to win our last game at home for our sophomores," said Brown. "We didn't rebound the ball down the stretch and West Plains did and that's how they won the game. I wanted to give our sophomores a chance to start tonight, tonight was more about them. All our sophomores are all good kids and they're going to graduate in May. That is the most important thing."

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics