Box Score (HTML)  I  Box Score (PDF)

EMPORIA, Kan. – The Northeastern State men's basketball team earned its first road win of the season by defeating Emporia State 73-63 Thursday night inside White Auditorium.
 
The RiverHawks (6-15, 4-10 MIAA) picked up a crucial season sweep over the Hornets (11-13, 4-11 MIAA), while moving into 12th place in the current league standings. The top 12 teams in the conference at seasons' end qualify for the 2015 MIAA Championship.
 
NSU had six players score at least nine points and four reach double figures. Senior guard Keon Littleton came off the bench to pace the winning side with 17 points and seven rebounds. Junior guard Demone Harrison registered 14, while junior forward Dakota Caudill and junior guard Trey Mohair each added 12. Senior guard Amir Gilliam and freshman forward C.J. Winzer each chipped in nine points.
 
The RiverHawks torched the nets to a season-best mark of 60.9 percent (28-for-46). They also shot 63.6 percent (7-for-11) from behind the 3-point line and 47.6 percent (10-for-21) at the free-throw line. Emporia State was held to 41.5 percent (22-for-53) shooting overall, 30.8 percent (8-for-26) from distance and 78.6 percent (11-for-14) at the charity stripe.
 
Micah Swank led the home team with 15 points. Terrence Moore took 14 shots to reach 15 points, and Jay Temaat needed 12 shots to get to 13 points.
 
Winzer scored at the 16:43 mark of the first half to put Northeastern State on top 6-4, and the green and white never trailed again. NSU stretched its early advantage to 15-5 and went on to lead 32-19 at halftime. The 19 first-half points scored by the Hornets were the fewest the RiverHawks have conceded in any half this season.
 
Northeastern State led by as many as 16 points in the second half before cruising to the 10-point victory.
 
NSU outrebounded ESU 29-26 and also led in assists (15-10), steals (9-6), points in the paint (34-26), fast-break points (12-4) and bench points (26-17).
 
The RiverHawks stay on the road for a 7 p.m. meeting Feb. 14 with Washburn.
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE COACH JASON TINSLEY
Initial statement...
"Obviously this win tonight was huge for us. It puts us back in the hunt for a playoff spot and gives us the tiebreaker over Emporia State. Hopefully it doesn't come down to that, but if it does, it puts us in position to get into the tournament that way. We shot the ball well, our defensive effort was good and our intensity was good. Tonight we talked about wanting to take great shots. If someone has a better shot, then we wanted to make an extra pass. If there is a better shooter on the floor, then we wanted to make the extra pass. We did a good job of taking really good shots in rhythm, and that showed on the stat sheet. This was also the first time in 2015 that we outrebounded an opponent. We knew going in this was a team we had a chance to outrebound, so I'm happy we were able to accomplish that goal."
 
On having six players with at least nine points…
"Dakota (Caudill) was 6 of 8 from the field. He did a much better job of attacking the rim and being physical. We are trying to get him to stop playing with so much finesse and start attacking. He was much better tonight. Trey Mohair was also great, making 5 of 6 from the field. Keon (Littleton) had 17 points and seven rebounds, and he was 7 of 10 from the field. That's a pretty good evening from those three."
 
On earning the first road win of the season…
"Road or home, every game is equally important for us right now. Trying to win games is a grind, but I'm happy we were able to find a way to win on the road. It's been rough for us this year, but the fact that our guys continue to battle shows how much they care. We got up by 16 in the second half. (Emporia State) cut the lead down to seven late in the game, but we held it together and didn't panic. To be able to sustain their run and stretch the lead back out in the end shows the fight in this team. We got some key stops and made some shots. I'm not sure a month ago we would've done that."
 
-GoRiverHawksGo.com-