Grizzlies nearly pull off upset of defending national champions

They were so close, they could taste it – that sweet taste of victory over one of their biggest opponents this season.

But the Missouri State University-West Plains (MSU-WP) Grizzly Basketball team fell 3 points and nine seconds shy of upsetting the defending national champion Coffeyville Community College Red Ravens in Tuesday's season opener at the West Plains Civic Center.

The Grizzlies trailed by as many as 23 points in the second half, but they regrouped and put on a hectic comeback to trail the Red Ravens by just 2 points with nine seconds remaining in the game.

With possession of the ball, the Grizzlies brought the ball down the full length of the court, but a pass to the right baseline was intercepted, and Coffeyville sealed the win with a free throw off a Grizzly foul for a final score of 70-67.

"Coffeyville is a good team and very tough to score on," Grizzly Basketball Head Coach Jared Phay said. "At the same time, we didn't shoot the ball well when we had open shots."

Scoring leaders

Returning sophomore guard Byron "Tre" Breland led the grizzlies in scoring with 18 points, followed by transfer sophomore guard Donovan Freeman, who added 15 points before fouling out late in the game.

Freshman point guard Sterling White and freshman guard Kevon Eskridge each chipped in 13 points.

Sophomore A.J. McBride led Coffeyville's scoring efforts with 12 points.

"There are some things we can build on from this game," Phay said. "I liked our defensive effort, and I liked how hard we played. But we need to improve offensively."

The Grizzlies will play host again Thursday night when they face the SEMO Prep Huskies from Cape Girardeau. Tip off is 7 p.m. at Joe Paul Evans Arena at the West Plains Civic Center.

For more information about the Grizzly Basketball program, visit www.msuwpgrizzlies.com or call 417-255-7991.