January 18, 2025 – The Hornet men shot below 30% in the game and missed their final 14 attempts from three as they fell 48-45 on the road against Central Missouri on Saturday afternoon.
Emporia State started slowly against the Mules, as Central Missouri put together a 9-3 run to open the game. A three from
Brayson Laube at the 17:09 mark closed the gap to 9-6 before the Mules expanded their lead to 17-10 over the next five minutes. The Hornets' second three, this time from
Chris Harris at the 11:40 kickstarted an 8-0, which included five points from
Arhman Lewis to take an 18-17 lead, their first of the game.
The Hornets maintained the lead for the final ten minutes of the first half, including holding a 30-23 lead with 1:04 left until halftime after a layup from Lewis. Central Missouri got the final two points to send the game to halftime with Emporia State leading 30-25.
In the first half, Emporia State shot 10-27 while holding Central Missouri to just 7-24 from the floor.
After the halftime break, the offensive struggles picked up for Emporia State.
Karyiek Dixon scored on the first possession to push the lead to 32-25, but the Hornets went cold over the next seven minutes, with the next basket coming on a
Chris Harris dunk at the 12:44 mark. Central Missouri held a 35-34 lead after the Harris dunk, and eventually built their largest lead of the game, a 42-35 advantage with 9:12 left in the game. The defense picked up for Emporia State over the final nine minutes, as they as the closed the deficit to 44-43 with 2:35 remaining on a layup from Dixon.
The Hornets were unable to get back in front, as the next field goal came from Central Missouri, as Tim Jordan Jr. made a three with 1:07 left make the score 47-43. The field goal for the Mules was the lone basket allowed by the Hornet defense in the final 4:38. Emporia State missed their next field goal attempt, before forcing a Mule turnover on the next possession.
Arhman Lewis responded with a layup with 13 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to two.
Central Missouri converted one of two free throws, leaving the door open for Emporia State. The Hornets missed a pair of three-point attempts in the final seven seconds, falling to the Mules 48-45.
Chris Harris led the Hornets with 11 points, his third game in double figures this season.
Brayson Laube and
Arhman Lewis each had nine points and
Karyiek Dixon added eight of his own.
Parker Day tallied a team-high 12 rebounds.
The 93 combined points is the lowest scoring game between the Hornets and Mules since a 42-40 win by UCM at ESU in 1950.
Emporia State will return to action on Thursday, January 23 as they host Northeastern State at White Auditorium. The Hornets will tip-off against the Riverhawks at 7:30 p.m.
