MARYVILLE - ( stats ) Sophomore Hunter Henry posted 21 points and eight rebounds to lead Northwest Missouri State men''s basketball to a 77-36 nonconference victory over St. Mary (Kan.) tonight at Bearcat Arena. Northwest, who is ranked No. 23 in the latest NABC poll, held St. Mary to 28 percent (13-of-47) shooting and had 41 rebounds compared to just 16 by USM.

After a jumper by USM''s Steven Morgan at the 14:30 mark, the Flames did not score a point for nearly five minutes. During that span, Northwest scored eight straight points and extended its lead to 24-5. The advantage grew to 51-16 after the first 20 minutes.

Freshman Mike Larsen added a career-high 16 points thanks to 4-of-5 shooting from behind the arc. Junior Matt Withers finished with nine points and six rebounds.

USM''s Tremaine Dalton was the only Flames athlete with over five points - he had 19 as he went just 6-of-18 from the floor and 3-of-10 from 3-point land.

The Bearcats had almost as many offensive rebounds (14) as St. Mary had for total boards (16).

Northwest, now 6-1 on the season, opens up Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) play with a visit to defending conference champion Southwest Baptist on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m. St. Mary falls to 0-5 on the season.