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SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State (6-3) tied a JQH Arena record with 25 offensive rebounds and got a double-double from junior Alize Johnson to lead the Bears past visiting Oral Roberts, 86-76, here Wednesday.
Johnson scored 20 points and snagged a career-high 16 rebounds in his third straight double-double effort and fifth for the young season. Jarred Dixon also contributed 15 points off the bench for MSU, helping the Bears accumulate 40 bench points.
ORU (2-9) was led by Kris Martin’s 35 points, while Jalen Bradley added 17.
The Bears out-rebounded Oral Roberts by a 46-31 margin and turned their 25 offensive caroms into 22 second-chance points. Johnson accounted for 10 offensive rebounds on his own.
Missouri State came out firing on all cylinders to take a double-figure lead less than seven minutes into the game. An 11-0 run over a four-minute stretch early in the opening half saw five different Bears in the scoring column during the run, including a dunk by Obediah Church.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Austin Ruder and Dixon midway through the half ended a 7-2 stretch by the Golden Eagles and helped the home side secure its biggest lead of the opening stanza, 25-13.
Just before the intermission, the Golden Eagles used a 3-pointer by Bradley, a layup by Martin and a shot off the glass from Emmanuel Nzekwesi to get within 42-40 at the break.
The visitors sustained that momentum into the second half, getting a triple by Martin and put-back jumper from Bradley to take their first lead of the game, 45-42 just over a minute into the final period. The lead changed hands four more times over the next four minutes before a 3-pointer by Ronnie Rousseau III ignited another 11-0 run by Missouri State. By the time the run ended at the 11:51 mark, the Bears had a 59-49 lead and would never trail again.
Coach Paul Lusk’s squad fought off another ORU rally late in the half when Martin accounted for 10 points of an 11-4 run by the Golden Eagles to make it a one-point game before the final media timeout. A rare four-point play by Martin with 6:23 to play made it a 70-69 contest.
But Ryan Kreklow and Dixon took the wheel for the home club with Kreklow getting a key score at the five-minute mark and Dixon scoring on a floater in traffic on MSU’s next possession to get some breathing room. Church then put the icing on the cake, scoring a powerful dunk on a pass from Dixon before getting to the line for a 3-point play opportunity moments later to stretch MSU’s lead back to 80-71.
The decisive 10-2 run down the stretch saw MSU’s defense step up at a critical point in the game, getting nearly six straight minutes worth of stops before Martin snapped the drought with a triple with 37 seconds to go – his seventh of the game.
Dequon Miller and Alize Johnson finished the game at the foul line in the final seconds to give the Bears their sixth non-conference victory of the year and fifth by a double-figure margin.
The Bears finished 33-of-74 (.446) from the field, setting a season high for attempts, while converting 7-of-21 (.333) from bonus distance with 46 rebounds, four turnovers and four blocked shots. MSU’s lone blemish on the night was its foul shooting as the Bears converted just 13-of-28 (.464) from the stripe and just 8-of-21 in the second half.
For its part, ORU fired at a higher percentage than the Bears, making good on 28-of-61 (.459) shots overall and 9-of-24 (.375) from long range. The Golden Eagles made 11-of-13 (.846) at the line with 11 turnovers, 31 rebounds and 24 points in the paint.
Missouri State, which improved to 5-1 at JQH Arena this season, continues its four-game home stand on Saturday for a 5 p.m. tip against in-state rival Southeast Missouri State (4-6) in the opening round of the Continental Tire Las Vegas Classic.
