BOX SCORE (PDF)

KANSAS CITY, Missouri - The No. 1-ranked Northwest Missouri State Bearcats ran away from the Missouri Western Griffons in the second half with an 80-54 victory in the MIAA Tournament semifinal held in Municipal Auditorium.

Northwest advanced to its fifth consecutive MIAA Tournament title game. Northwest has won the previous four MIAA tourney crowns. Northwest (30-1 overall) also reached the 30-win mark for the third time in four years. Northwest also knocked off Missouri Western for the 16th straight time.

"Our kids handled adversity even though we weren't totally engaged," head coach Ben McCollum said. "We were playing hard, but we not totally there. Our kids didn't get frustrated and we were fortunate to get the win. In the second half, we played better and communicated better. I was happy to see the second half as we executed the game plan. When we got our rhythm, we were good."

Missouri Western jump out of the gates quickly and silenced the partisan Bearcat crowd in Municipal Auditorium with a 9-0 run. The Bearcats answered the Griffon run with a 13-0 spurt and the first-half battle was on. MWSU's Tyrell Carroll tallied 16 of his 22 points in the opening half as the Griffons buried 51.9% of their first-half shots. Missouri Western held a 31-29 lead at the break - only the sixth time this season that the Bearcats trailed at the half. 

The Griffons last lead of the game came 38-37 on a pair of free throws from Carroll. Northwest used a 12-2 run to take a 49-40 lead that was capped by a tip-in by junior Ryan Hawkins. Northwest would own the second-half scoring advantage, 51-23.

Northwest shot 64.3% (18-of-28) in the final 20 minutes, including 57.1% (8-of-14) from three-point land. Missouri Western cooled off to 30.8% (8-of-26) in the second half and finished the game at 41.5% from the field. Northwest would finish the game at 52.8% from the field, marking the 21st time this season that Northwest has shot 50% or better from the field. 

Bearcat sophomore Diego Bernard nearly tied the MIAA Tournament record for rebounds in a game with 19. Missouri Western posted only 22 rebounds in the game. Northwest won the rebounding battle, 38-22. Bernard posted the most rebounds by a Bearcat in 33 years with his 19-rebound effort. Northwest's Jeff Hutcheon tallied 20 rebounds against Southeast Missouri State on Feb. 26, 1987.

"I pride myself on defense and the ball happened to bounce up by way," Bernard said. "I didn't know I had 19, but I wanted to get every loose ball I could."

Bernard was one of five Bearcats to reach double-figure scoring with 10 points. Hawkins led the way with a game-high 28 points. Sophomore guard Trevor Hudgins tallied 13 points to go along with six assists. Senior Ryan Welty knocked in four three-pointers for 12 points. Freshman Wes Dreamer was credited with 10 points off the bench. 

Northwest will play Missouri Southern in Sunday's MIAA Tournament title game at 3:15 p.m. Northwest is 2-0 this season against Missouri Southern.

NOTES: Northwest has won 22 consecutive games overall ... Northwest has won 38 straight games on neutral floors ... the Bearcats have won 16 straight games at Municipal Auditorium ... Northwest has advanced to the program's 15 MIAA Tournament title game ... the Bearcats own eight MIAA tourney titles, including four in a row ... head coach Ben McCollum is 20-4 in MIAA tourney games ... Tyler Dougherty and Ryan Welty have tied the MIAA tourney record for championship game appearances with Southeast Missouri State's Michael Morris, who also appeared in four title games from 1985-1988 ... Welty set the MIAA Tournament record for career three-pointers with 29 ... Welty buried four three-pointers in the win over the Griffons ... Welty is 29-of-47 from deep in 11 MIAA Tournament contests ... Northwest has won 45 of its last 47 games against MIAA opponents ... Northwest's 130 wins over the past four years ties it for the NCAA Division II record for wins over a four-year period ... West Liberty also captured 130 victories from 2011-2014 ... Northwest is 68-1 over the previous two seasons ... Northwest is 6-0 this season when trailing at the half ... Northwest knocked in 13 three-pointers, marking the 21st time this season that Northwest has made 10 or more three-pointers in a game.