By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
KANSAS CITY - Missouri Western overcame a cold shooting start and dominated the offensive glass in a 64-55 win over Emporia State in the MIAA tournament quarterfinals on Thursday in Kansas City.
The Griffons (25-4) got down by eight points in the second quarter, 19-11, after shooting only 3-of-15 from the field in the first period.
Emporia (14-16) led 30-25 at the break, but Western righted the ship, going on a 12-0 run and scoring 24 third quarter points, leading 49-46 entering the fourth.
The Griffons' defense took over in those closing 10 minutes, as Emporia State shot only 2-of-13 in the last frame.
The Hornets, who led the MIAA with 215 made three-pointers coming in, went just 3-of-19 from long range Thursday. Missouri Western was 8-of-24 from deep.
Missouri Western was also dominant in rebounding, particularly on the offensive end. The Griffons won the rebounding battle 43-32, including 14-3 on the offensive glass.
Missouri Western earned 20 second chance points off of those offensive boards. The Griffons' bench also outscored Emporia's 17-4.
Seniors Connie Clarke and Brionna Budgets led the way in scoring. Budgets had 14 points, while Clarke notched 13. Freshman Tiani Ellison, in her fifth start of the season, finished with 11.
Alyssa Bonilla came up clutch in the fourth quarter, scoring all seven of her points off the bench in the final period.
Katie Horyna, who didn't play against Missouri Western on Feb. 10, led Emporia with a game-high 18 points. Faith Paramore had 13.
The Griffons have won 15 straight games, and have now beaten Emporia State in each of the last five meetings.
Missouri Western advances to the MIAA tournament semifinals, where they will play either No. 4 seed Missouri Southern (20-8) or No. 5 seed Pittsburg State (21-7).
Southern and Pitt play in quarters on Friday at noon.
Full audio broadcast
Emily Wacker postgame
Alyssa Bonilla postgame
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