Lincoln falls flat in 22-point home

setback to Missouri Southern

Loeffler's Link

Jan. 13, 2018

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. --- Thursday night, Lincoln overcame an eight-point deficit down the stretch to rally past Pittsburg State.

Good win, something to build.

Then again, maybe not.

Less than 48 hours later, Saturday afternoon was --- for the most part --- a surprisingly uninspired effort by the Blue Tigers, as the Missouri Southern Lions used an early 15-0 run to grab control and never look back in a 92-70 win at Jason Gym.

"I don't think we came out with the intensity we needed to get another home win,"Lincoln head coach John Moseley said."'I don't know if we were satisfied with Thursday night's home victory, but we didn't come out with a purpose, especially on defense.

"We made some mistakes and they were able to capitalize on them."

The crowd matched the enthusiasm of the team. Jason Gym was about half empty and there was no band, because classes don't resume after the Christmas break until Tuesday.

This is more of an excuse than a reason --- but to some extent, it is still a reason.

"This community has been tremendous over the break," Moseley said, "but it will be a welcome sight to get our students and band back. They do make a big difference with their presence, their energy, and getting some excitement going in the gym."

The Blue Tigers (8-9, 2-6 MIAA) were attempting to match their season-high three-game winning streak. To that end, Maurice Mason hit a 3-pointer 47 seconds into the game to give Lincoln a 3-0 lead.

As it turned out, however, that was the Blue Tigers' only lead of the game.

The Lions (11-6, 6-2), winners of eight of nine, took the lead for good on a 3-pointer Elyjah Clark two minutes into the game. That was part of a 15-0 burst and it also set the tone for the first half --- a half that featured more runs than a cheap pair of pantyhose.

"Offensively, they put us in some tough situations and we were trying to make too many individual plays," Moseley said. "Then when we did have opportunities to score, we didn't finish."

After that game-changing 15-0 spurt, the teams would trade runs of 6-0, 10-1, 10-4 and 12-4, the last coming by Missouri Southern. The Lions would lead by as many 17, before a 3-ball by Alexander Nailes in the final minute of the half got the Blue Tigers within 41-27.

And when the Blue Tigers scored the first five points of the second half to extend their run to 8-0, it was only a nine-point game at 41-32.

But that would be that. Missouri Southern rattled off the next 10 points to open up a 51-32 lead, and would lead by as many as 27 down the stretch.

"I thought we'd made some decent adjustments at halftime, and we came out early and it looked good," Moseley said. "But then, they came down and hit back-to-back 3's, which was kind of the straw that broke the camel's back. Our guys kind of hung their heads after that."

Bright spots?

"Tonight," Moseley said, "is a tough night to find bright spots. We'll dwell on this for about 12 hours, then we'll get together and watch film, put it behind us, and get ready for the next one.

"We've yet to see the best 40 minutes this year's team has to offer, and that's something we're in constant pursuit of. We've seen it in spurts. But when you're playing really good teams, you can't put yourselves in situations where you're trying to dig yourselves out  of holes every night."

Braelon Walker led six players in double figures with 16 points for the Lions, who beat the Blue Tigers by only four points, 80-76, last month in Joplin.

For Lincoln --- which received 14 points apiece from Mason and Terrance Smith --- it won't get any easier this week with road games at the University of Central Missouri and Southwest Baptist. 

"Every night in this league is a battle, Moseley said."

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CALL IT A SOPHOMORE JINX, IF YOU WISH, but Iberia's Dexter Frisbie has endured a rough second year with Missouri Southern.

The 6-11 post man and 2016 graduate of Iberia, Frisbie had a solid freshman campaign when he averaged five points and four rebounds a game. But this season was a non-starter --- he broke his left foot during the team's fourth practice last fall, then it was discovered he also had a stress fracture in his right foot during an examination in mid-December.

Frisbie has had surgeries on both feet and will miss the entire season, but is expected to be back to 100 percent next fall.

He's not the only mid-Missouri connection for the Lions, as both Sam and Paul McMahon, graduates of Jefferson City High School, are assistant coaches on Jef Boschee's staff. If Boschee's name also sounds familiar, there's a reason for that, too --- he was a standout guard for the Kansas Jayhawks from 1998-2002.

Maybe Saturday was Lincoln's tribute to Boschee's days in Kansas. Flat.

But then again, maybe not.

Injuries to both feet have made 6-foot-11 Missouri Southern sophomore Dexter Frisbie --- a 2016 graduate of Iberia --- one of the world's biggest cheerleaders.

Lincoln's Terrance Smith puts up a short jumper over L.J. Ross of Missouri Southern in the first half of Saturday's game at Jason Gym,