It was cold outside, but Washburn University women's basketball was hot from the start on Friday afternoon in Lee Arena, scoring 47 points in the first half to down Missouri Western 71-55 and earn a fourth straight win.
Washburn senior Payton Sterk (20) scored 20 of her game-high 22 points in Friday's 71-55 MIAA win over Missouri Western. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
Washburn improved to 14-5 overall and 7-3 in the MIAA while avenging an earlier loss to the Griffons (6-13, 2-8).
"I thought we did a really nice job in the first half with a lot of things we've been working on,'' Washburn coach Lora Westling said. "We were solid defensively and stayed in front of the ball and I thought we got some really good looks offensively and weren't forcing.
"I thought our shot selection was great and a great team effort.''
It was the Griffons who took an early 9-7 lead with a pair of 3-pointers, but Washburn answered back with an 8-0 run, including five points from senior Payton Sterk, who had 20 in the first half.
"I think it definitely gets me going and gets the team going, too,'' Sterk said of her hot start.
The Ichabods shot 50.0 percent in the first quarter and ended the final minute on a 4-0 run to lead 21-14 after the opening quarter.
The Washburn run continued with the first four points in the second quarter, pushing the lead to double figures. A quick 5-0 burst was capped off by a 3-pointer from senior Gabi Giovannetti that pushed the lead up over 20 points.
While Washburn shot over 50.0 percent again in the second stanza, Missouri Western was held to just 2 of 8 shooting in the frame as the Ichabods built a 47-24 lead.
Out of the break Washburn's offense cooled off as they were held scoreless until junior Kellyn Hunter knocked down a jumper with 4:24 left in the quarter. She hit another shot to push the lead back over 20 points the next possession.
The Ichabod defense helped maintain the lead, with the Griffons hitting just 4 of 11 shots in the quarter.
The Griffons' offense picked up in the fourth quarter, scoring the first 10 points to make it a single-digit game with 6:38 remaining.
But Ichabod junior Britany Kogbara got a pair of shots to fall over the next few possessions to push the lead back into double digits. Missouri Western knocked down a 3-pointer with 3:06 remaining, but that was the last time it would get on the scoreboard as the Ichabods finished the game on a 6-0 run to put away a 16-point win.
The hot start helped Washburn shoot 40.7 percent for the game along with 8 of 17 (47.1) attempts from 3-point range. The Ichabods were also 19 of 22 at the free throw line.
- Details
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
No. 1-ranked Washburn University men's basketball posted its 20th straight win to open the season Friday at Lee Arena, posting a 90-78 MIAA decision over Missouri Western.
Senior Sam Ungashick came off the bench to score 17 points for No. 1-ranked Washburn in Friday's 90-78 MIAA win over Missouri Western. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
The Ichabods used efficient shooting, balanced scoring and several timely runs to keep the Griffons at arm's length, improving to 20-0 overall and 10-0 in the conference.
And while Washburn coach Brett Ballard wasn't necessarily pleased with every aspect of Friday's win, he also knew it was solid enough to get the job done.
"We got up 22 there in the first half with about three minutes left and had a chance to kind of slam the door,'' Ballard said. "We didn't finish the half real well, so that was disappointing, and then we just never could never string together enough stops to put this thing away.
"But I've got to remind myself that we're so spoiled with the teams we've had here the last couple of years and how we've won a lot of these games. You crush a team on Wednesday (94-44 over Northwest Missouri) and I think sometimes you assume that's how it's going to go every time, but in this league that's just not the reality. You're going to have to grind through some of these and ultimately that will be good for us.''
Washburn weathered an early back-and-forth stretch that featured six ties and one lead change in the opening minutes before exploding offensively.
After Missouri Western (13-8, 5-5) briefly led 3–0, Washburn responded with a surge fueled by transition baskets and inside touches, eventually stretching the margin to as many as 22 points late in the first half.
Washburn turned a 42-30 lead with 5:34 to go in the first half into a 54-32 margin with 2:44 to play in the half after a 12-2 run.
However, Missouri Western closed the half on a 10-2 run, trimming the Washburn advantage back to 14 at 56-42.
The Ichabods shot a scorching 81.5 percent from the field and 75 percent from deep in the opening period, building the lead.
Missouri Western mounted multiple challenges in the second half, trimming the deficit into single digits midway through the period, but every run was answered by the Ichabods.
A sequence of interior buckets and fastbreak finishes helped Washburn stabilize the lead, and a late push pushed the margin back into double figures down the stretch.
The Ichabods finished with 25 fast-break points and 48 points in the paint, consistently beating the Griffons down the floor and attacking the rim.
Washburn placed eight players in the scoring column, with several delivering standout performances.
Sophomore Dillon Claussen led the way for the Ichabods with 18 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting night while adding six rebounds and four assists.
Senior Sam Ungashick provided a major spark off the bench, knocking down shots in transition and finishing with 17 points in 17 minutes on 7-of-9 shooting from the field while making his first six shots of the game.
Ungashick's top two scoring games of the season have both come against the Griffons as has his Washburn career-high.
"I think it might be a little bit of chance,'' Ungashick said. "But it's always a matchup game and all my guys are always instilling confidence in me and having faith in me to go out there and prove it.
"When you see those first couple go in it helps and when I hit the late stepback 3 (in the first half) that's kind of when I felt it was a good game for me.''
