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Truman State University Athletics

Mells15_Rockhurst1
Tim Barcus - University Photographer
96
Winner Truman State TSU 16-5, 8-3 GLVC
74
Missouri S&T MST 8-11, 1-10 GLVC
Winner
Truman State TSU
16-5, 8-3 GLVC
96
Final
74
Missouri S&T MST
8-11, 1-10 GLVC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Truman State TSU 38 58 96
Missouri S&T MST 29 45 74

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Tyler Madsen, Athletics Communications

Men's BB Recap: Truman 96, Missouri S&T 74

The Basics:
Final Score: Truman 96, Missouri S&T 74
Records: Truman (16-5, 8-3 GLVC) || Missouri S&T 8-11 (1-10 GLVC)
Series: Truman leads all-time series, 92-48|| Truman has now won the last five meetings.
Location: Rolla, Mo. (Billy Key Court)
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ROLLA, Mo. - - The Truman State University men's basketball team shot a mind-boggling 84.6% from the floor in the second half, connecting on 22-of-26 shots to put up 58 points in the final 20 minutes en route to a 96-74 road win at Missouri S&T on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Bulldogs turned a nine-point halftime advantage into a 30-point lead in the second half before closing with the highest point total against another NCAA Div. II team this season for the squad. For the game, Truman shot 64.3% (36-for-56) from the field, including 9-of-13 from three-point range (7-of-8 in the second half) to log its fifth straight win and remain tied for first in the Great Lakes Valley Conference West division with Drury (Mo.) at 8-3.
 
After jumping out to a 21-7 lead through the game's first nine minutes, the Bulldogs let S&T creep to within five at 30-25 with 3:04 to play in the opening half. The Bulldogs spread the lead back to 11 at 38-27, before the Miners got a bucket before the intermission for a 38-29 halftime score.
 
The second half never featured a trademark extended run by the Bulldogs – partly due to the team's struggles in possessing the basketball with 20 turnovers – but the purple and white hit basket after basket to push the gap between the teams. An Isaac Gardner three-pointer off an Andrew Vander Zwaag assist gave the Bulldogs their largest lead at 89-59, before S&T scored 15 of the game's final 22 points to reach the final tally of 96-74.
 
Two players surpassed the 20-point mark offensively for the Bulldogs, as senior guards Reed Mells (21 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals) and Seth Jackson (20 points, seven rebounds, three assists) shot a combined 15-for-25 with four three-pointers. Sophomore Connor Erickson – making his first career start – made the most of it by scoring 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting to go with three rebounds, two steals, a block and an assist in 15 minutes. Junior Cole Myers led the Bulldogs off the bench with 12 points, six rebounds, a game-high five dimes, and three steals, while his brother, sophomore Cory Myers added three points, three assists, three rebounds, and three steals.
 
The Bulldogs out-scored S&T 48-30 in the paint and turned 15 Miner miscues into 20 points on the offensive end. Truman's 20 turnovers and 15-for-26 free throw shooting served as the team's worst enemy on the day, as the 'Dogs also out-rebounded the Miners 39-28.
 
A cross-division first-place battle is next in store for the Bulldogs, as Truman travels to No. 6 Bellarmine (18-2, 10-1 GLVC) on Thursday (Feb. 5) in Louisville, Kentucky. Tipoff between Truman and the Knights from historic Knights Hall is set for 8 p.m. (ET)/7 p.m. (CT) and can be heard on the Bulldog Sports Network (104.7 FM KRES local) and online at www.CentralMoInfo.com.
 
Additional Notes:
  • Senior Seth Jackson moved into fourth-place on Truman's all-time career scoring list with his 12th 20-point outing of the 2014-15 season, now sitting with 1,448 career points. He passed David Winslow's total of 1,447 – set from 1977-81 – and is 107 points back of tying Brian Basich (1992-96) for third all-time at Truman.
  • Truman's last four games have been absolutely dominating on the offensive end, as the Bulldogs have averaged 90.8 points per game, shot 54.5% from the field, and 47.1% from three-point range (48-for-102).
  • The Bulldogs are now 4-1 in GLVC road games this season – stumbling only at UMSL on Jan. 15 – and will play four of their next seven (current stretch is six of nine) away from Pershing, including next weekend's long trip to Bellarmine and Southern Indiana.
  • Truman is now a perfect 11-0 this season when they score 80 or more points in a game. Saturday marked the sixth time this year the purple and white topped 90.
  • The Bulldogs missed just four shots in the second half on Saturday, with the bench going a perfect 8-for-8 from the field. No official statistics are kept on a single-half shooting performance in Truman's record books.
  • This is just the second time this year that the Bulldogs have had two different players top the 20-point mark in a single game. Jackson and Mells also did it against UW-Parkside, while Jackson and Cory Myers did it against UMSL.
  • The 64.3% is the second-highest percentage shot by a Bulldog squad this season. Truman hit 66.7% of its shots against Central Christian on Dec. 13.
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