SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State’s steal and fast-break dunk by Chance Moore with 1:58 to go tied the game and erased what was once a 10-point second-half deficit against visiting Purdue Fort Wayne. But the Mastodons (7-4) outscored the Bears 8-4 in the final two minutes, including 4-of-6 free throws, to steal a 65-61 victory here Saturday in a wild non-conference matchup at Great Southern Bank Arena.The Bears (4-6) were led by 23 points and 6 rebounds by Chance Moore in his first collegiate start, while Alston Mason scored 14 and dished out 3 assists. Donovan Clay also pitched in 6 rebounds and 3 assists for MSU, which dropped its third straight.MoState also broke a school record for 3-point field goal attempts with 41, the fifth most in Missouri Valley Conference history.Meanwhile, the Bears held PFW to 5-of-19 (.263) from downtown after the Mastodons came in averaging 10.6 threes per game.After trailing by one at the half, the Bears came out the second half with quick buckets from Mason and Clay to tie things up, 33-33. But the visitors responded with their best surge of the night, reeling off 10 unanswered points over the next three minutes to lead 43-33, the largest margin of the night for either team.MSU responded immediately with James Graham hitting a triple off the bench ahead of Mason’s first of two treys. Chance Moore’s runner at the 12-minute mark closed MSU’s gap to 43-41 and set the pace for what would be a back-and-forth ending.Down the stretch, Moore took over for the Bears and used a layup and four free throws to bookend a 3-pointer by Dalen Ridgnal, which ultimately knotted things up, 50-50, at the 7:39 mark.MSU would throttle control back from there with Mason hitting a step-back jumper and then another clutch triple that gave the Bears a 55-52 advantage with just under five minutes on the clock. PFW then got a controversial three-shot foul opportunity on its next possession as Jarred Godfrey tied it up with three makes, and then gave the Mastodons the lead with another bucket just before the final media timeout.But Chance Moore’s fast-break dunk with 1:58 to go tied the score for the eighth and final time as the sophomore threw down his fourth slam of the game in making it a 57-57 contest.In crunch time, Godfrey scored again before Ra Kpedi’s dunk gave the visitors a four-point cushion. Then with 35 seconds to go, Clay went to the line a chance to pull the Bears closer. But he missed the front end of the one-and-one, which forced MoState to foul.Down five after a PFW free throw, Mason got a quick basket. Then when PFW’s Deonte Billups make 1-of-2 free throws with 16 seconds left, N.J. Benson made it a two-point game with a close-range shot at the rim to get the home side back within 63-61 with 8.8 ticks showing.A second later, Billups iced the win for the Mastodons, going back to the stripe and making both free throws with the game on the line to push the visitors ahead by the final four-point margin.Godfrey had 17 points to lead the Horizon League club, while Billups was also in double figures with 12. Kpedi snagged a game-high 14 rebounds, including seven on the offensive end.The Mastodons finished 25-of-53 (.472) overall and made 10-of-16 (.625) free throws with a 39-33 rebounding edge and 30 points in the paint.The Bears turned the ball over just eight times and made 18-of-22 (.818) shots from two-point range, while converting 25-of-63 (.397) overall and 7-of-41 (.171) from distance. MSU also racked up 32 points in the paint, had 10 assists and snagged 9 steals.In the first half, the Bears pushed ahead by eight after Chance Moore’s third dunk of the half made it 27-19 with just over five minutes left in the period. MSU cooled off to the tune of 1-of-8 field goals in a critical stretch before the intermission, while the Mastodons ended the period on an 11-2 run to lead 30-29 at the midway point.The Bears will now turn their attention to academic finals next before resuming non-conference action Friday in Tulsa against Oral Roberts (7-3) at 7 p.m. Missouri State then returns to Great Southern Bank Arena on Sunday, Dec. 18 to host Central Michigan at 5 p.m.
