The Lindenwood men's basketball team improved to 3-1 in the MIAA on Friday night with a 76-62 win on its home court against Missouri Western.
The first half of the game was a defensive battle that the Lions led for nearly the whole time. Both teams shot under 40 percent from the field, including under 30 percent from three-point range. Lindenwood took an 8-4 lead after back-to-back three-pointers by
Nick Van Osdale and led by as many as nine early on. Missouri Western chipped into the lead before halftime as the Lions led 27-22 at the break.
In the second half, both offense began to heat up. The Griffons went on a 13-4 run to open the period to go up by four points. After trading the lead back-and-forth four times, the Lions finally took the lead for good on another Van Osdale scoring spurt. This time he hit a jumper in the lane to put the Lions up 39-38, and followed it with a three-pointer. Lindenwood slowly built a double-digit lead and eventually put the game away at the free-throw line.
Lindenwood's defense held Missouri Western to just 37.1 percent shooting from the field, and the Griffons made just three-of-17 three-pointers. The Lions also dominated the boards by 12 rebounds, and allowed just four second-chance points in the game. Offensively, the Lions finished with 43.4 percent shooting from the field, and they made 10 three-pointers and 20 free throws.
Offensively, the Lions received some help from new sources, including three Lions setting or tying career-high in points. Van Osdale led the team after scoring 19, including six-of-nine shooting from the field and four-of-six from beyond the arc.
Chandler Diekvoss hit double-figures for the first time as a Lion with 13 points, with seven of his points coming in eight trips to the free-throw line.
Scott Kroeger added eight points, including six in the final half.
Cory Arentsen finished with 18 points, and led the team with seven rebounds and five assists.
Zachary Biggs also pulled down seven boards.
Lindenwood improves to 7-3 overall and 3-1 in the MIAA. The Lions face their toughest test of the season on Sunday afternoon when they host No. 25 Northwest Missouri at 3 p.m.
