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By David Boyce

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Intensity oozed out of the pores of Lindenwood players Saturday afternoon. The Lions knocked down some three-pointers early on to excite their home crowd at Hyland Arena. But it was all a moot point for the No. 1-ranked Northwest Missouri State men's basketball team.
 
The Bearcats hit 18 of their first 22 shots for a blistering 82 percent. They built a 17-point lead late in the first half and cruised to an 89-64 victory.
 
"It was a lot of fun," Mosby said of the hot start. "It is something we work on, finding our flow and being us. Today was a good testament to that."
 
Northwest, 21-0 overall and 13-0 in the MIAA, increased its record of consecutive regular-season MIAA wins to 25 in a row. The old mark was 19 established in 1931 by Northwest. The Bearcats have also won over 20 games for the sixth straight season.
 
"That shows the culture we have developed over the years," Northwest coach Ben McCollum said. "We have kids that teach the younger kids how to be part of our program and how to win. And how to be successful after Northwest. We think that translates into wins."
 
The Bearcats finished the game shooting a school record 67.9 percent from the field, breaking the old mark of 67.3 percent set Nov. 29, 2003 against Rockhurst.
 
"When we are clicking, I don't think anybody can stop us," said senior Anthony Woods, who finished with 14 points.
 
The first basket of the game gave an early indication that Justin Pitts and the Bearcats were going to sizzle in the opening 20 minutes. He drove and scored. Junior Chris-Ebou Ndow followed with all five of his first-half points, giving Northwest a 7-0 lead.
 
Lindenwood spent the next 10 minutes trying to make up the seven-point deficit. The Lions fought hard and made it interesting for a while.
 
A stretch of three, three-pointers over a 2-minute period allowed the Lions to close to 13-11. Mosby pushed the Bearcats' lead to four on a basket in the paint, followed by a field goal by Pitts to make it 17-11.
 
Lindenwood answered with a three-pointer. It didn't faze Pitts in the least. He scored the next five points to make it 22-14. The Lions, though, kept clawing away and closed to 26-23 with under 9 minutes left in the half.
 
"I thought they hit some tough shots to start," McCollum said.
 
Despite holding only a three-point lead, Northwest was in complete control. The Bearcats scored the next seven points for a 33-23 lead. The Lions had one last charge in them, closing to 33-28. The rest of the half belonged to Northwest.
 
It started with the first three-point of the half by Northwest on a long-range bomb by senior Zach Schneider. That was followed by a bucket in the paint by Mosby and then two free throws by Mosby, making 42-28.
 
"Whenever they are guarding our shooters, we can do direct drives to the basket and that is always good," Woods said. "Eventually, they are closing in and we get kick outs to Zach and them."
 
The second three-pointer of the game for Northwest came from junior Xavier Kurth and it increased the lead to 45-28. It was at that point that Northwest had made 18 of 22 for 82 percent with still 4 minutes remaining in the first half.
 
With a healthy lead, Northwest finally cooled down, missing its next four shots before Pitts ended the brief cold spell with a three-pointer. The trey concluded a spectacular first half for Pitts, who went 8 for 9 from the field for 21 points. He finished with 23.
 
Northwest went into halftime ahead 50-34. Schneider opened the second half with a three-pointer to give Northwest a 19-point lead.
 
The Bearcats completely quieted the crowd in the second half. A three-pointer by Woods put Northwest up 67-43 with still over 12 minutes remaining. Less than a minute later, Woods had a three-point play to make it 70-45.
 
Mosby followed with a field goal, increasing the Bearcats' lead to 72-45. That basket gave Mosby 12 points. He finished with 14. It was his first double-digit scoring game since Jan. 5 when he scored 11 at Missouri Southern.
 
Perhaps it was just a coincidence, but after Thursday's win at Lincoln, Mosby received a new ukulele that arrived at his apartment Thursday morning. He had a Northwest student, who was making the trip to Jefferson City, Mo., pick it up and bring it to him.
 
Mosby was able to play his ukulele on Friday and Saturday morning.
 
"Maybe it calmed me down," Mosby said of the ukulele. "I have been playing it a lot. Xavier and I have been jamming out.
 
"Honestly, any game anybody has a chance to shine, and I guess tonight was my night."
 
Oh, back the game. Northwest continued to play well and held an 81-49 lead with 7 minutes remaining.
 
After the game, former Northwest men's basketball coach Steve Tappmeyer, waited outside the locker room to greet McCollum, who played for Tappmeyer at Northwest. Tappmeyer joked that McCollum is making it look easy.
 
"It is never easy," McCollum said to Tappmeyer.
 
Tappmeyer also attended the Lincoln game on Thursday.
 
"He taught a lot of what I know in how to develop a culture," McCollum said. "He established Northwest as a program. Obviously, he helped me get the job. I wouldn't be in this position and have this success without him. It means the world for him to come to our games."