KANSAS CITY, Mo. – No. 2-ranked Washburn never trailed and led from the opening basket to the final horn as the Ichabods closed out the Central Regional Challenge with an 83-67 victory over No. 9 Minnesota State on Saturday afternoon at Municipal Auditorium. Washburn will return to Kansas City on Wednesday facing Rockhurst.
Washburn improved to 3-1 on the season behind a career performance from
Jack Bachelor, who poured in a career-high 36 points while knocking down seven 3-pointers. Bachelor finished 11 of 23 from the field, 7 of 13 from beyond the arc and 7 of 8 at the free throw line while adding five assists and three steals. Going back to last season, Bachelor has scored 24, 27, 14 and 13 in his last four games played in Municipal Auditorium with the first three coming in the MIAA Tournament last March.
The Ichabods seized control immediately, scoring the first eight points of the game.
Tyler Salmon opened the scoring with a layup before Bachelor connected on a 3-pointer and
Brody Owen added a transition triple off a turnover to make it 8-0 less than two minutes into the contest.
After Minnesota State trimmed the deficit to six, Washburn answered with another surge. A Salmon 3-pointer and a Bachelor triple pushed the lead to 16-4 with 15:12 to play in the opening half.
Bachelor stayed hot throughout the first half, drilling five 3-pointers and scoring 15 points before the break. The Ichabods built their first 15-point advantage at 30-15 on a
Kade Cook layup with 8:23 remaining. Minnesota State later cut the margin to eight at 22-30, but Washburn responded with a 13-9 finish to the half, taking a 43-31 lead into the locker room.
Washburn shot 54.5 percent (18 of 33) in the opening half and connected on 7 of 15 3-point attempts. The Ichabods also capitalized on Maverick turnovers, holding a 14-0 advantage in points off turnovers in the first 20 minutes.
Minnesota State never got closer than 12 points after halftime. Bachelor scored the first four points of the second half as Washburn stretched the lead to 47-31. A
Marcus Glock layup off a turnover extended the cushion to 49-31, and a Bachelor 3-pointer at the 15:02 mark pushed the advantage to 52-33.
The Ichabods continued to build the lead, reaching 61-40 on Cook's 3-pointer and later taking their largest lead of the game at 68-46 when Glock buried a 3-pointer with 8:53 remaining. The 22-point margin matched Washburn's biggest lead of the contest.
Minnesota State mounted one final push, using an 8-3 run and three consecutive 3-pointers from Brock Badding to cut the lead to 71-60 with 6:44 left. Washburn answered immediately, scoring nine of the next 14 points. Bachelor scored seven points during that stretch, including a 3-pointer with 4:34 remaining that pushed the lead back to 20 at 80-60 and effectively sealed the victory.
Cook joined Bachelor in double figures with 11 points while grabbing eight rebounds.
Tyson Ruud recorded 10 points and seven rebounds, and Salmon finished with nine points, eight rebounds and four steals. Owen added seven points and a game-high six assists as Washburn recorded 19 assists on 30 field goals.
Minnesota State was led by Badding's 19 points off the bench on five 3-pointers and Kirkman with 18 points and six rebounds.
Washburn finished 30 of 64 from the field (46.9 percent), hit 11 of 28 from 3-point range (39.3 percent) but were outrebounded 40 to 34 by the Mavericks. The Ichabods forced 15 Minnesota State turnovers and turned them into 24 points while recording 10 steals. Washburn also held advantages in points in the paint (34-26) and fast-break points (8-0).
