Northwest Missouri advances in MIAA tourney
Northwest Missouri hopes to make a another big run in the postseason.
The Bearcats advanced their cause on Friday night with a 79-73 victory over No. 8 seed Pittsburg State in the quarterfinals of the MIAA tournament at Municipal Auditorium.
Northwest Missouri, the top seed and the defending national champion in NCAA Division II, got 25 points from guard Justin Pitts, who was the MIAA player of the year for a second straight season.
The Bearcats, ranked No. 7 in Division II, will square off against No. 4 seed Central Oklahoma on Saturday in the semifinals.
Central Oklahoma held off fifth-seeded Central Missouri 72-68 on Friday night. Spencer Reaves had 29 points, including seven three-pointers, for Central Missouri.
Other games
Cameron Wiggins made eight three-pointers and finished with 27 points in Washburn's 75-65 win over No. 6 seed Nebraska-Kearney in the quarterfinals on Friday. Wiggins' eight threes were one shy of the MIAA tournament record. Washburn, the No. 3 seed, will face Fort Hays State in Saturday's semifinals.
Hadley Gillum made two free throws with 1.3 seconds left in overtime and No. 7 seed Fort Hays State beat No. 2 seed Missouri Southern 86-85 in overtime. Gillum finished with 26 points and nine rebounds. CJ Carr had a game-high 28 points to go with eight rebounds for Missouri Southern.
This story was originally published March 2, 2018 at 6:44 PM with the headline "Northwest Missouri advances in MIAA tourney."