February 14, 2026 – The Hornet men rallied from an 18-point deficit to pull level with a minute left before falling 84-78 on the road against Nebraska-Kearney.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Hornets and Lopers went back and forth early in the game, as the lead traded hands five times leading up to the first media timeout with just over 12:23 left in the first half with Emporia State trailing Nebraska-Kearney 18-17.
 
Out of the timeout, the Lopers stretched their lead to 26-19, but the Hornets responded with a 10-2 scoring run that was capped off by a Trey Redd jumper to put Emporia State ahead 29-28 at the 8:22 mark.
 
Over the next eight minutes, Emporia State went just 2-12 from the floor. The drought allowed the Lopers to put together a 23-4 scoring run to build a 51-33 lead in the final minute of the first half, the largest lead for the hosts in the game.
 
Trey Redd scored the final three points of the first half to settle the score at 51-36 heading into the break.
 
After halftime, Nebraska-Kearney continued to hold onto their lead through the first seven minutes, leading the Hornets 66-51 with 12:53 left in the game. Emporia State scored the next nine points to close the gap to six points with just over ten minutes, and after briefly falling behind by ten points, the Hornets slowly chipped away the Loper lead.
 
Emporia State eventually cut the gap below six points at the 6:47 mark on a Dallas Bear three to make the score 72-69. The entire 18-point deficit was finally closed at the 1:48 mark on Dallas Bear's fourth three of the game to make the score 76-76.
 
The Hornets couldn't retake the lead in the final 100 seconds, as they missed their final four field goals and fell to the Lopers 84-78.
 
A LOOK AT THE STATS
Emporia State shot 46.9% from the floor, while the Lopers shot 58.5%, the second highest mark by an opponent this season. Emporia State outrebounded Nebraska-Kearney 36-26, which included an 11-1 gap on the offensive glass.
 
Treyvon Taylor matched his career-high with 21 points on 9-14 shooting while also recording his second double-double with ten rebounds. Trey Redd had 13 points, seven assists and seven rebounds. Dallas Bear had 12 points on 4-8 shooting from three.
 
UP NEXT
Emporia State returns home on Saturday, February 21 as they take on Newman from White Auditorium. Tipoff between the Hornets and Jets is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.