Men's Basketball Falls in OT at Health Sciences & Pharmacy

St. Louis, Mo., (Nov. 5, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College men's basketball traveled to St. Louis, Mo., Tuesday evening, for a non-conference game with Health Sciences & Pharmacy (Mo.).  The Vikings went to overtime, but fell by a final score of 70-68.

Missouri Valley was kept scoreless through nearly five minutes of play to open the game.  The first field goal of the contest came on a three-pointer from Senior Jace Lance (Marshall, Mo.) to cut the team's deficit down to 4-3.  Lance ended up scoring the first eight points of the game for MVC, and sent the team ahead, 8-7, with nearly eight minutes off the clock.  Senior J'Luan Patterson (Belleville, Ill.) added a layup moments later, while a basket from Senior Cawhan Smith (Collinsville, Ill.) made it a 12-9 advantage midway through the half.  The Vikings stayed on top through the next stretch of play, as Senior Geovonni Floyd (Bowling Green, Ky.) put in a dunk, and Senior Jarrius Burnett (Warrenton, Ga.) added a jumper as the score sat at 16-11 near the eight-minute mark.  Missouri Valley scored seven-straight points over the next several minutes, as Senior Keenan Jones (Chicago, Ill.), Lance and Patterson each scored on layups to stretch the lead out to 23-14 with five minutes to play in the half.  The two teams traded points, until a three-pointer from Jones gave MVC a double-digit lead, 30-19, two minutes later.  Patterson scored the final five points of the half for Missouri Valley, and the team went into halftime holding a 37-24 advantage.

The second half started with Health Sciences and Pharmacy outscoring the Vikings by an 8-2 margin over the opening three minutes to cut the deficit down to 39-32.  Burnett added a jumper and Smith made one free throw to put the team in front by double-digits, 42-32, moments later.  Health Sciences and Pharmacy gradually worked down the gap, and eventually claimed a lead midway through the half, 47-46.  Lance responded with a layup, and a steal from Burnett led to a dunk for Patterson as MVC went back on top, 50-47, at the eight-minute mark.  Jones broke a tie with a free throw to put the score at 51-50 less than one minute later, but UHSP moved ahead, 53-51, with less than six minutes remaining.  Senior David Ajanaku (Ondo, Nigeria) finished off a three-point play, and Smith made a pair of free throws to give the Vikings a 56-55 lead near the four-minute mark.  Another basket from Ajanaku made it a 60-57 score with under three minutes to play, but Health Sciences and Pharmacy came back to take a 63-61 advantage with one minute on the clock in regulation.  Patterson sank a pair of free throws to tie the score, and both teams missed late shots to win the game, as the contest went into overtime tied at 63-63.

Missouri Valley took an early lead in the overtime period, after made layups from Ajanaku and Patterson made it a 67-63 score midway through.  Health Sciences and Pharmacy worked back to tie the teams at 68-68 one minute later, and two late free throws put the team ahead, 70-68, with less than one minute to play.  Missouri Valley had a pair of three-point shots in the closing moments to win the game, but both shots were off target, and the Vikings fell, 70-68.

Patterson came off the bench to lead the team with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.  Lance scored 14 points and three assists.  Lance becomes the program's all-time assist lead with 473 assists in his career. Burnett had 10 points and seven rebounds.  Ajanaku added 10 points and five rebounds.  Missouri Valley held a 42-41 edge in rebounds and forced 21 turnovers.

The loss drops Missouri Valley to 1-1 on the season, while Health Sciences and Pharmacy improves to 1-0.

Up next, the Viking men's basketball team hosts Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) in a non-conference contest, Thursday at 7 p.m., inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  Missouri Valley topped the Trojans on Friday, 77-64.

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About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.