CALEB RIORDAN | Reporter
The Lions beat Missouri Baptist on Monday to give them 11 straight home opening wins.
The Lions and Spartans traded buckets early on in the first half. However, Lindenwood was able to take control of the game. After the second media timeout, senior point guard Adam Pohlman hit a layup to give the Lions a one-point lead.
They never looked back as they went on a 26-9 run to close out the first half. The run was capped off by a three in the closing seconds from senior Brad Newman to give the Lions a 49-33 halftime lead. The Lions shot 52.8 percent from the field in the half while making 46.7 percent of their shots from three.
Photo by Mitchell Kraus
Newman had 15 points in the half on 6-9 shooting and going 3-5 from beyond the arc. Senior Chandler Diekvoss followed Newman with 10 points in the half. Sophomore Diego Womack was huge for the Lions on the glass as he grabbed seven first half rebounds.
For the Spartans, senior Pablo Hernandez and sophomore John Yaeger each contributed seven points in the half, followed closely by sophomore Jesus Castillo and junior Jahmouri Robinson with six points each.
The second half saw the Lions’ lead grow to 23 points. The Spartans were not able to cut the lead by a significant margin at any time. Lindenwood outscored the Spartans 37-36 in the second half, and won the game 86-69.
“Pohlman was unbelievable for us tonight with how he distributed the basketball,” head coach Lance Randall said. “Diekvoss, Newman, and Womack each provided the scoring we needed, and Womack was exceptional on the glass all night long.”
Newman ended with 18 points for the Lions to lead all scorers. Diekvoss ended with 14 points and five rebounds. Womack ended up with his first career double-double, registering 12 points and 13 rebounds. Five of his 13 boards were offensive. Junior Chris King was the last Lion to finish in double figures with 11 points. Pohlman finished with five points, four steals, and tied a career high with 13 assists.
Castillo, Robinson, Hernandez, and Yaeger all ended with 12 points for the Spartans in the losing effort.
The Lions were able to score 20 points off turnovers to the Spartans’ 13. They also had the advantage in second chance points, 11-2. Missouri Baptist narrowly had the advantage on points in the paint, 36-34. Lindenwood was able to do damage in the fast break, outscoring the Spartans 15-2.
The win is the Lions’ third in a row, bringing their record to 5-3. Next for the Lions is another home game, this Friday against Culver-Stockton College at 4 p.m.
