Griffins Unable To Overcome Slow Start Against Webster

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Fontbonne University men's basketball team fell 84-74 against rival Webster on Saturday afternoon.

The Griffins (2-6; 0-3 SLIAC), shot a season-low 36.4 percent from the field but did go 10-of-25 from downtown to make two straight games they've hit at least 40.0 percent of its 3-pointers.

Thomas Ritter led Fontbonne with his team-high 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting. James Wiggins netted a season-high 12 points and six rebounds, while Jared Woodcock contributed 11 points off the bench. Luke DeLine was the final Griffin to reach double-figures with his 10 points.

Webster, meanwhile, owned a field goal percentage of 51.6 and out-rebounded the Griffins on the glass, 49-38. Christian Crespo led all scorers with his game-high 22 points. Parker Van Nest recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, while Nigel Wilcox nearly had a double-double of his own with 14 points and nine boards.

Enrique Tankins and Josh Johnson were the final players to reach double-figures, netting 13 and 11 points respectively.

It was a slow start for the Griffins out of the gate as the Gorlok's jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first five minutes and that forced FBU's coaching staff to take a timeout.

After the break, the Griffins got going and eventually cut it down to six (20-14) after Jahmad Wilburn earned the old-fashioned 3-point play at the 10:39 mark.

Webster maintained its lead and stretched it back out to 32-21 with 5:53 on the clock. However, back came Fontbonne on a quick 6-0 run on 3-pointers from McCann and Ritter to narrow the deficit down to five (32-27).

The Gorlok's were able to control the final four minutes and 30 seconds of play, outscoring Fontbonne 12-5 and that allowed them to head into the locker room on top, 44-32.

In the second half, James Wiggins' jumper at 17:32 put the Griffins back within striking distance at 46-37. Later, another made lay-up from Wiggins made it 56-45 (13:43), though Webster went on a 7-0 run over the next two minutes to take a 63-45 advantage.

Fontbonne got the lead back down to 13 (73-60) on Noah Coddington's made lay-up at 5:44. However, Webster fended off the Griffins the rest of the way going on for the 10-point win.

The team returns to action at home on Tuesday when they'll take on No. 11-ranked WashU. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 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.