Roadrunners lose hard-fought battle to Moberly

Sedalia, Mo.-The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners men's basketball team dropped a tough 72-67 game to Moberly Area Community College on Wednesday, Feb. 4 inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center. The back-and-forth contest featured 11 lead changes and nine ties. The game was part of the Region 16 schedule for both teams. Moberly is receiving votes in the latest NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Rankings.

SFCC (12-14, 3-5 in Region 16) stormed out to a 12-3 lead courtesy of a three-point shot from freshman guard/wing Andin Ashford of Wilkesboro, N.C. with about 16 minutes remaining in the first half.

"We came out with a lot of energy," said Roadrunners head coach Jeremy Jackson. "When we play hard and when we execute, we can allow for a couple of little mishaps as long as we are going hard. I thought our guys were embracing that."

The Roadrunners pushed the advantage to 22-9 with less than 11 minutes remaining in the half.

Moberly trimmed the SFCC advantage to 22-17 with an 8-0 run to battle their way back into the contest. SFCC held a 30-27 lead at halftime.

The game was tied at 59 with less than four minutes to go.

Moberly took a 66-63 lead off a three-point shot with one minute and 31 seconds remaining in regulation. Moberly made just enough plays in the final minute to secure the victory.

"I thought it was a hard-fought game by both teams," said Jackson.

Freshman wing JP Ndong of Germany/Senegal led SFCC in scoring with 14 points. Freshman wing Da'Ron Hall of Nashville, Tenn., sophomore wing Jai'Kori Phillps of Pine Bluff, Ark. and Ndong all tied for the team lead in rebounds with six. Freshman guard Nate Wilder of East Stroudsburg, Pa., dished out a team-high six assists. Freshman guard Chanler Joseph of West Palm Beach, Fla. led the team in steals with three. Phillps and sophomore forward Malick Ndiaye of Dallas, Texas tied for team lead in blocked shots with three.

"I think JP has been playing well all semester," said Jackson. "He is being identified by all the teams and they're not letting him catch the ball and pressing up on him when he does. I think he is handling that well. I thought Damian Dirden started the game well. He made a couple of three-point shots to get us going. I think getting Nate Wilder back is huge for us. He is a strong guard who wants the ball in his hands with the game on the line."

SFCC will return to action against on Wednesday, Feb. 11 against Mineral Area College in another Region 16 contest. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center.

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics