Lopers Get Within Six with 12 to go But Hornets Respond
Kearney, Neb. – The 24th-ranked Emporia State Hornets got a career-high 28 points from 6-7 guard Alijah Comithier and used a second half run to down Nebraska Kearney, 72-59, Wednesday night in Kansas. This game was moved up a day due to scheduling issues at White Auditorium. The Hornets (15-3, 9-3) win a fifth straight game and improve to 7-1 at home against the Lopers (3-14, 1-10) since 2012. An All-Region selection at Colorado-Colorado Springs last year, Comithier countered a big night from Colorado sophomore guard Sean Evans. With Utah super senior Darrian Nebeker called for three fouls in the first half, Evans stepped up and poured in a season-best 23 points. He made 5 of 7 threes as the Lopers fell behind 34-21 at the break. “We didn’t play well in the first half. We spotted them 13 points and when you’re playing a ranked team that’s as physically talented as they are, it’s going to be a tall order to come back,” said UNK head coach Kevin Lofton on the KRVN Radio post-game show. “Our team did dig in and tried to do that in the second half but then their point guard (Owen Long) stepped up and made some bombs.” Nebeker picked up just one foul in the second half and finished with 11 points and three assists. His lone triple of the night made it 45-39 with just under 12 minutes remaining. That capped an 11-4 Loper run but E-State responded in a big way. Post Mayuom Buom first blocked an Evans layup attempt and then Long sunk a deep three. That started a 17-5 spurt that put the game on ice. “The ball got stuck (offensively) in the first half and we weren’t finishing layups and good percentage shots. If you finish those it’s a different ball game going into the half,” said Lofton. "It also hurt that Darrian played only eight minutes." Emporia went 10 of 29 from downtown with UNK (8 of 19) almost equal to the task. UNK was plus one on the glass with the Hornets posting a plus five turnover margin and getting 22 points off its bench. Comithier went 9 of 12 (4 of 6 threes) from the field and 6 of 8 at the line with nine others in the scoring column. That included Long, previously of D2 Maryville and D1 Youngstown State, who had 15 thanks to three treys. He also had five assists and four rebounds. Also for the Lopers, Colorado sophomore guard Tom Connelly hit two threes to score 10 with New Zealand senior guard Matt Brien supplying seven points in 14 minutes off the bench. “Sean stepped up. That’s the second really good game he’s put together,” said Lofton. UNK heads to Washburn Saturday at 3 p.m. The Ichabods (7-9, 4-6) upset Fort Hays State tonight, 74-64.
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