MACC GREYHOUNDS MEN’S BASKETBALL SPLITS WITH MINERAL AREA, THREE RIVERS

Greyhound teams host Crowder and Missouri State–West Plains on Saturday

The Moberly Area Community College men's basketball team recently split key Region 16 matchups against Mineral Area College and Three Rivers College.

On Saturday, Feb. 7, Moberly defeated Mineral Area 70–63 in front of a strong crowd at Fitzsimmons-John Arena. Moberly was led in scoring by Lavonta Ivery with 18 points (16 in the second half). Caleb Estes added 17 points, while Shaunassey Hatchett contributed 13 points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Harrison Bailey Howard scored 10 points off the bench.

Moberly traveled to Poplar Bluff on Wednesday to face Three Rivers. Despite leading by five points with four minutes remaining, the Greyhounds fell short, losing 70–64 to the Raiders. Bailey Howard led Moberly with 17 points (4-of-5 from three-point range), Ivery added 16 points, and Josh Lowe scored 11. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Greyhounds.

"Tremendous win over a very good Mineral team," said Coach Patrick Smith. "I thought we showed a lot of toughness down the stretch to close the contest out. Against Three Rivers, we lost the first four minutes and the last four minutes of the game, and that cost us the opportunity to win. We battled some adversity and played very well at times, but we had too many breakdowns within our system to secure the victory. However, I'm proud of our effort, and we must keep getting better in all areas to finish the season strong and prepare for the postseason."

Moberly returns to action Saturday, Feb. 14, hosting Missouri State University–West Plains at 4 p.m. The Lady Greyhounds will host Crowder College at 2 p.m.

MACC is currently 21–5 overall and 5–4 in Region 16 play, holding the No. 3 seed.