Griffins Hard Fought Effort Comes Up Short Against No. 11 WashU

Photo taken by Missouri Baptist Director of Athletic Communications, Brad Cygan 

ST. LOUIS, Mo.--  The Fontbonne University men's basketball team trailed by just four against No. 11-ranked WashU on Tuesday night, however the Bears pulled away in the second half and went on for the 98-68 win.

The Griffins (2-7), shot 46.6 percent from the field and leading the charge was Luke DeLine's 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Kris McCann went 7-of-13 from the floor to finish with 16 points.

WashU (7-1), picked up the 30-point win thanks to its 58.8 field goal and 55.6 3-point percentage in the second half. Overall, the Bears shot 56.7 percent and 43.5 percent from downtown.

Six players reached double-figures and they were paced by Andrew Sanders' 17 points and eight rebounds on 8-of-10 shooting. Matt Highsmith netted 13, while Jack Wiernicki led the group off the bench with 12 points.

It was a back-and-forth outing throughout the first half but the Griffins would own the upper hand at 13-10 (15:35) on McCann's made lay-up.

The team maintained its lead and stretched it out to 21-16 on Erich Schark's made bucket at the 10:40 mark. However, a quick 7-0 run over the next two minutes and 32 seconds gave the Bears a 23-21 lead on Devaughn Rucker's made free throw.

With 6:35 to go, the Bears were on top 29-23 but Fontbonne continued to chip away at the lead and were down just 32-30 on James Wiggins' made jump with 4:45 left in the first.

WashU, however fended off the Griffins the rest of the way and headed into the break on top, 40-36. Both teams shot at or above 50.0 percent in the first half. McCann led FBU with his nine points, while Sanders dominated going 7-of-9 to finish with 14.

In the second half, the Griffins continued to stay within striking distance and at 10:13, the team trailed just 63-60 on Jared Woodcock's made basket.

The Bears, though eventually put distance between themselves and Fontbonne by going on a 14-1 run in three minutes time to take a 77-61 lead. It was all WashU the rest of the way, outscoring the Griffins 21-7 the final eight minutes of play and going on for the 30-point win.

FBU will now shift its focus back to conference play as they'll face the fast paced offense in Greenville on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates and recaps on the men's basketball team.