UNK MBB: Hill Scores 23 as Lopers Beat the Griffs Again

Redshirt junior guard Ja’Bryant Hill scored a game-high 23 points and Nebraska Kearney came up with two late offensive rebounds to beat Missouri Western, 75-69, Thursday night in St. Joseph.

Both teams haven’t played since late December with UNK (3-8, 1-2) having now taken three of the last five meetings with the Griffons (9-4, 102). The two meet again Jan. 18 at the Health & Sports Center.

UNK came off the Holiday Break well rested and hot as they shot 61 percent (14 of 23) from the field to lead 43-33 at the break. That offensive production included a buzzer beating three by Hill (Duncanville, Texas). While a three from graduate guard Allen Taylor (Rogers, Ark.) started the second half, the Griffs started to warm up while also changing its defense.

“We wanted to come out the first five minutes of the second half and go on a little run. We were up 10 and thought maybe we could separate but they came out with that press,” said UNK head coach Marty Levinson on the KRVN Radio post-game show. “They did a good job but then we attacked it. You’ve got to attack pressure and score against it, so they stop doing it. We’ve struggled with that this year, but we did a good job tonight.”

A 31-12 run over a 10- minute span gave Mo West its biggest lead of the night at 64-58. UNK weathered that storm by not letting the deficit grow and then regained the lead after graduate Chase Thompson (Omaha Westside) made the first of two free throws. That made it 67-66 and the Lopers won’t trail again.

“It was our defense. When we went to that zone, we did a good job of finding their shooters and it kind of stopped us from fouling,” said Levinson. “That might be the reason we ended up with more free throws than they did.”

Ahead 71-69 with 50 seconds remaining, UNK missed its next two shots, but Thompson and Hil grabbed loose balls. Those led to two made free throws by Hill and then junior wing Kendrick Gilbert (St. Louis) sunk two more to finish the scoring. The Lopers went 25 of 30 at the line while the Griffs were just 13 of 19.

“I’m happy for these guys because we’ve been on the wrong end of a lot of really close games this year,” said Levison. “For us to fight a team off at the end, find a way to get a W, and win our first conference game; that’s a step in the right direction.”

After scoring a season-best 24 against nationally-ranked Metro State to close out the first semester, Hill made 6 of 11 (2 of 4 threes) shots and 9 of 10 free throws. He also added four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Next, Thompson went for 14 points (3 of 6 threes) with five others between six and nine points. That group included Bellevue guard Trey Hepburn (seven points, four steals and three assists).

“Trey set the tone and was awesome today. The scout is out on Allen, but he impacts the game in so many ways,” said Levinson. “Loose balls win games. We had multiple guys chasing the ball tonight.”

Mo West was led by Arkansas-Monticello transfer Zane Nelson who had 19 points, six assists, and three rebounds. He was the 2024 Great American Conference (GAC) Newcomer of the Year.

UNK heads to Northwest Missouri on Saturday with that game now beginning at 1 p.m. due to an impending storm. The new-look Bearcats fell to 3-9 (1-2) on the season after a 58-39 setback to Fort Hays State tonight.