BOLIVAR, Mo.- The Jets finished 2024 at Southwest Baptist. They took the match 72-65 to head into the new year with a 9-2 record.
How it Happened:
-The Jets offense started the game with an 8-0 run. Jordan Glenn-Hawkins scored six of the first eight points with three jumpers. The Bearcats were finally able to get some points on the board after three minutes of solid Jets defense. Heading into the first media timeout, the Jets had the 8-3 lead. After the media timeout, Sam Medalie hit his first points of the night with a three-pointer to extend the Newman lead out to eight. After the three from Medalie, the Bearcats started to connect on their offensive end and closed the gap to three points. Thatcher McClure was the next Jet to score at the 9:38 mark to take the Jets lead back to six points. Isaiah Elmore connected with his first bucket of the night to keep the Jets on top. The Bearcats continued to answer the call, keeping the game within reaching distance with under eight to play. The Bearcats answered with back-to-back baskets that tied the game at 17 all. SBU then took their first game lead with a free throw to make it 18-17. Aaron Murphy retook the lead for the Jets with a jumper with under six minutes to play. The Bearcats were able to tie it back up at 19 all. Deadric Fikes scored his first points to take the lead at 21-19. Then, the Bearcats connected with a three-pointer to retake the lead. The Jets answered with free throws to take the lead at 23-22 at the final media break of the half. After the break, Medalie scored his fifth point of the night to take the lead to three points, but then SBU retook the lead with a dunk and two free throws. Glenn-Hawkins then connected with his eighth point of the game to put the Jets back on top, but the Bearcats continued to answer the call and took back the lead at the 1:27 mark. With just a few seconds left in the half, Aime Rutayisire earned himself a trip to the free throw line to put the Jets up by one, 29-28, heading into halftime. Glenn-Hawkins led the Jets with eight points and three steals in the first 20 minutes of play.
- After the break, the Bearcats were first to score with a three-pointer by Drenin Dinkins, his 14th point of the night. Boston Stanton III was the first Jet to score in the second half, hitting two free throws to tie up the game at 31 all. Glenn-Hawkins continued to dominate, scoring four points in a row which allowed the Jets to push their lead out to four heading into the first media timeout of the half. After the media timeout, the Jets were able to take their lead to eight points after free throws by Fikes and a basket and two free throws by Somerhalder. Dinkins of SBU hit his 19th point to close the gap to five, but Murphy answered with a three-pointer to keep the Jets on top. With 13 minutes left to play, the Jets held the lead at 44-38. The Bearcats went on a 7-0 run that closed the game to just one point, 44-43, with 11:34 left to play. The Jets went on a 4-0 run to take their lead out to six with nine minutes left to play. Dinkins continued to pull the Bearcats along, scoring his 23rd point to close the gap to four. Stanton III then scored the Jets next four points, extending the lead to six. Dinkins continued to answer the call for the Bearcats offense, scoring another basket to keep SBU within striking distance. Stanton III had the hot hand, scoring his tenth point to answer the Bearcats basket to keep the lead. Another three by Stanton III pushed the Jets to a 62-54 lead with just over three minutes to play. The Bearcats tried to chip away at the Jets lead, but Newman continued to answer back. SBU brought themselves back within three points with 1:26 to go after hitting a three. The Jets defense stopped the Bearcats on two possessions in a row to secure the ball with 22 seconds left, where the Jets called a timeout. After the timeout, Glenn-Hawkins made two free throws to secure a five-point lead. Somerhalder then came up with a big steal on the next Bearcats possession, forcing SBU to foul again which sent Glenn-Hawkins back to the line. Glenn-Hawkins connected with both free throws to put the Jets up seven with 15 seconds left. The Bearcats then scored on their next possession to cut the deficit to five. SBU was forced to foul, sending Stanton III to the line. Stanton III hit both free throws to close out the game. The Jets finished 2024 with a 72-65 win.
Player Notes:
-Stanton III led the way with 20 points, 6-12 FG
-Glenn-Hawkins scored 16 points and 2 steals
-Somerhalder totaled 12 points with 5 steals
- The Jets start 9-2, their best start to the season since the 2015-2016 season.
The Jets will start back up on the road after the new year. They will first face Rogers State on January 2nd at 7:30 PM and then will face Central Oklahoma on January 4th at 3:30 PM.
