Box Score (XML) | Box Score (HTML)  | Season Statistics | MIAA Tournament Bracket | MIAA Championship page

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Washburn Ichabods won their fifth MIAA Tournament with a 67-63 win over Pittsburg State Sunday in Muncipal Auditorium. The Ichabods will receive the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and discover their postseason opponent at 9:30 p.m. tonight. The webcast will be at ncaa.com.

The Ichabods (24-7) started off slowly as the Gorillas jumped out to a 14-6 lead with 13:19 to play in the first half. Washburn took its first lead at 21-20 with 4:37 to play in the half on a jumper by Jared Henry. After the Gorillas tied the score at 21, Washburn regained the lead and then stretched it to six at 28-22 with 1:27 to play in the half. Pitt State hit a three with just over a minute to play to the the lead at 28-25 and neither team would score the rest of the half.

The second half saw the ichabods pull out to a 10-point lead at 40-30 on a lay up by Martin Mitchell with 15 minutes remaining, but the Gorillas cut the lead back to three less than four minutes later. Again Washburn pulled away going back up by eight at 47-39 on a jumper by Henry.

After the teams went more than three minutes without a score, the Gorillas regained the lead at 53-52 with 4:33 to play on a 3-pointer by Rico Pierrevilus. Washburn took the lead back on a pair of free throws by Will McNeill at 54-53.

The teams were tied again at 57 with 2:45 left but McNeill hit a pair of free throws and Bobby Chipman hit two more to put the Ichabods up 61-57 with 1:31 to play. PSU trimmed the lead back to two after two free throws, but McNeill hit another pair of free throws to go back up four at 65-61 with 15 seconds left. Pitt State missed a three-pointer and Chipman hit a free throw to go up again by five. PSU hit a jumper with three seconds left to trim the lead back to three at 66-63. McNeill hit a free throw with a second left to push the final margin back to four at 67-63.

McNeill led the Ichabods with 16 points earning tournament MVP honors. Kyle Wiggins finished with 12, Zack Riggins had 11 and Chipman finished with 10.


Notes
* Washburn improved to 12-7 in MIAA Tournament games in Kansas City.
* Washburn won its first MIAA Tournament title in Kansas City.
* The Ichabods are now 1-3 in MIAA Tournament finals in Kansas City. (Lost to Missouri Western in 2003, Northwest Missouri in 2004 and Nebraska Omaha in 2010.)
* Overall Washburn is 5-5 in MIAA Tournament finals.
* The Ichabods previously won the MIAA Tournament during the 1992, 1994, 1997 and 2001 seasons.
* Will McNeill tied the school record for steals in a single season tying Bobby Sumler's single-season record of 73 set during the 1986-87 season.
* Washburn is now 32-15 in the MIAA Tournament with head coach Bob Chipman recording all the wins - the most by any coach in tournament history. He also won his fifth MIAA Tournament title, the most by any coach.