Bearcat basketball teams prep for stretch run
DALTON VITT/DAILY FORUM
Senior guard Conner Crooker finds himself down low against the Missouri Southern defense on Wednesday when the Bearcats pulled out a 76-75 home win.
With the MIAA basketball schedule shifting into the backstretch, both the Northwest men’s and women’s teams have seven games left to improve their standing in the conference.
That final handful of games, set to be played over the course of the next three weeks, begins Thursday when the women tip off at 5:30 p.m. against Lincoln at Bearcat Arena, followed by the men’s game. Just two days later, both teams turn around to face Lindenwood in a doubleheader beginning at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in Bearcat Arena.
The Bearcat men fell to both Lincoln and Lindenwood earlier this season, Dec. 18 and Dec. 20, 2015, by final scores of 79-74 and 68-52, respectively.
But that was a different stage of the 2015-2016 season. Now, Northwest sits in first in the MIAA at 12-3, one game ahead of Lindenwood. Lincoln is in sixth place at 8-7.
“I didn’t think we played overly well down there, and I thought their two teams really did play well and they played hungry,” head coach Ben McCollum said. “It’s always nice to have a chance to redeem yourself and try to get some type of revenge, if you can. It’s going to be tough. Both teams are playing really well.”
No team in the league is playing better than Northwest, however, which is cruising with a five-game win streak to bolster itself at the top of the MIAA. The most recent win was an 81-74 victory against rival Pittsburg State on Saturday, Jan. 30.
Saturday’s contest against Lindenwood presents a pivotal swing the conference race — a Bearcat win could double their lead over the Lions to two games, while a Lindenwood victory on the road would leave the two teams knotted for first in the MIAA.
“Hopefully it will help us along our goal of winning a conference championship,” McCollum said. “But you’ve got to win them first.”
The women find themselves chasing a different goal entirely. After picking up their first conference win of the year on Thursday, Jan. 21 at home against Nebraska-Kearney, the Bearcats have now lost three in a row and find themselves last in the league.
Northwest sits two games back of the 12th and final spot in the MIAA Tournament behind Lindenwood and Northeastern State, which are tied at 3-12 for the last conference playoff bid.
The Bearcats lost Saturday, Jan. 30 on the road to Pittsburg State, 74-66, despite holding a 12-point lead after three quarters.
“The toughest thing as a coach is when you see the same type of mistakes happen game-by-game when those situations arise,” Northwest interim head coach Buck Scheel said. “I think a lot of that just comes from them maybe not being as confident in themselves as they should be. They know that if I didn’t have confidence in them that they wouldn’t be out on the floor. In games like that and in games coming up — because I’m sure we’ll probably be in some similar situations — we have to be able to take the initiative and not really play to lose, and not be surprised that we’re in that situation.”
With seven contests remaining, the Bearcats still have time to pick up enough wins to shift themselves into a tournament spot. But two of those seven remaining games come against top 25 teams in Missouri Western and Emporia State, and opportunities are dwindling.
Northwest lost to both Lincoln and Lindenwood on the road earlier this season, but by a combined six points in the two games.
This weekend could provide either a step in the right direction or a slip further away from postseason play.
“I shouldn’t have to pump them up at all,” Scheel said. “If I’ve got to pump them up for these two home games, then they probably shouldn’t be playing college basketball.”
DALTON VITT/DAILY FORUM
Bearcats sophomore forward Tanya Meyer finds herself open under the basket on Wednesday against Missouri Southern, a 57-47 loss in Bearcat Arena.
