Kaden Evans dribbles down the court during the first round of MIAA Conference Tournament against Lincoln.
Emporia State men’s basketball traveled to Kansas City to compete in the MIAA conference tournament on March 6.
ESU came into the tournament as the No. 7 overall seed while having a record of 19-11 throughout the season, with a conference record of 12-10. The Hornets entered the tournament winning five out of the six last games of the regular season.
No. 10 ranked Lincoln came into the game with a conference record of 9-13, and an overall record of 14-14 on the season. The Blue tigers came into the tournament with a 5 game losing streak while closing out the regular season.
Both teams are 1-1 against each other this season before the conference tournament with the Blue Tigers winning the first game 71-63 in Jefferson City, MO on Jan.11. The Hornets however, would claim the second game of the season 66-57 in White Auditorium on Feb. 24.
Owen Long would lead the Hornets in scoring during the first half with a total of eight points, closely followed by Alijah Comithier, with seven points. However, the Blue Tigers would outshoot the Hornets from three point range, shooting 27.3%, and Hornets shooting only 18.2% from three. Going into halftime the Hornets would take a slim lead, 32-28. Throughout the first half there were a total of four lead changes, but the Hornets led 16:47 of the first half compared to the Blue Tigers leading for 1:27 minutes.
Four minutes into the second half the Hornets lead would diminish as the Blue Tigers took control of the game, 36-34, with 16:26 to play. Both teams would continue to change a total of 13 leads throughout the second half until the Blue Tigers ultimately pulled away, winning 59-55.