The Emporia State men’s basketball team lost to the Northwest Missouri Bearcats 56-67 last Saturday.

In this series, the Bearcats have the lead 30-20 and have split with the Hornets the last four years.

In the first half, the Bearcats went on an 11-0 run while keeping the Hornets scoreless for seven minutes.

“You cannot come from behind all the time,” said junior guard Robert Moores. “Sooner or later it is going to haunt you – coming in 11-0 is going to hurt you real bad.  We just need to emphasize before we go out there we need to have intensity the first five minutes of the game but we lacked doing that.”

The Hornets ended the first half down 37-26 despite Moore’s making 14 points, four of those shots from three point range.

“We know we have to compete all the time defensively,” said junior guard Lamar Wilburn. “We have to make stops because we are not at home and we are not going to make every shot that we routinely make at home.”

The Hornets struggled on offense even more in the second half, make only 30 percent of their shots while not being able to stay consistent on the floor.

“I do not think we hit a wall,” said head coach David Moe. “I think we just made some mistakes and spent energy getting back into the game.  I made a couple mistakes subbing guys and then subbing back I think we played out of desperation and did not make anything happen when we got desperate.”

With seven minutes left in the game, the Hornets eliminated their 12 point deficit and kept the game close until the Bearcats pulled away with the win.

The Bearcats took advantage of ESU’s mistakes by making 26 points off of turnovers, causing the Hornets to play from behind.

“We are going to make some strides coming out of this game,” Moe said. “You’re not going to win on the road if you turn over 10 more times than your opponent and you’re not making shots all over the place.”

The Hornets came out of this game with two road losses in a row, making it difficult going into their third road game.  Despite the two road losses, the Hornets are still in second place in the MIAA with a record of 13-5 overall and 7-4 in the conference and just a game behind sixth nationally ranked Southwest Baptist for first place.

The second round of conference play continues this week and with an Emporia win this Wednesday the Hornets could stay in contention for first place and extend their record to 8-4 in the conference.

The Hornets are six for two in away games this season and will play at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday against Missouri Western in Missouri.

Cristian echeverria/The Bulletin

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The men’s basketball team went 5-1 in six games over the winter break and will face the Washburn Ichabods on Saturday.

On Jan. 10, the Hornets defeated the Pittsburg State Gorillas 102-100. They also tied an MIAA record for the most overtimes in a single game and played four overtime periods before winning the game.

The Hornets made six of 10 foul shots in the final overtime period to secure the win. This victory moved the Hornets into second place in the MIAA.

The Hornets are 12-3 so far this season and the Ichabods have a record of 9-6.

The annual two game series between the Hornets and the Ichabods is referred to as the Turnpike Tussle because if someone were to take the Turnpike between Emporia and Topeka it would only take 45 minutes.

The two teams are sure to have a heated match.

“We have been rivals for over 90 years,” said head coach David Moe. “We are just right down the road from each other.”

The series has had its share of incidents between fans and mascots.

“The mascots got into a fight in my second or third year and it’s just very exciting,” Moe said. “It will be a very exciting match and a great environment.”

The Hornets will have to strive not to become distracted by their rivalry with the Ichabods.

“Washburn has always been one of the most talented teams in our league,” Moe said. “Washburn’s big, athletic and talented and they’re going to come here and try and intimidate us and we can’t let them intimidate us.”

Washburn is known for being a very physically tough opponent that can wear down the opposing team.

“I think we need to play more physical than them and we have to play smart,” said senior center Shang Ping. “I think we will be ready to play Saturday.”

The team is anxious to play against Washburn.

“I know they are a pretty talented team,” said junior guard Jeremiah Box. “The fans are always crazy and I am really looking forward to this game.”

This will be the 189^th meeting between Emporia State and Washburn.

The teams are tied 94-94 coming into the game on Saturday, which may make the  atmosphere even more hectic as the two teams battle to take the lead in the series.

David Moe has a record of 126-90 and is in his eighth season as the head coach.

Washburn’s head coach Bob Chipman has a record of 657-257 in his 30^th year.

“He has been there a long time,” Moe said. “It’s not easy having the amount of success he has had over the years that he has been there.”

The Hornets will play against the Ichabods at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at White Auditorium.

Matthew Pierce/The Bulletin

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