Men's Basketball Drops OT Road Contest at Grand View

Des Moines, Iowa, (Feb. 15, 2025)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's basketball teams traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, for a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader against Grand View (Iowa), Saturday afternoon.  The women's team fell, 66-60.  The men's team forced overtime, but lost, 82-75.

Missouri Valley got out in front early in the men's game, as Senior Jarrius Burnett (Warrenton, Ga.) made a three-pointer, followed by field goals from both Senior Geovonni Floyd (Bowling Green, Ky.) and Senior Keenan Jones (Chicago, Ill.) to make it a 7-2 score with less than two minutes played in the contest.  Grand View worked back to tie the teams at 7-7, with a layup from Senior David Ajanaku (Ondo, Nigeria) putting MVC back on top, 9-7, near the 15-minute mark.  After GVU briefly moved ahead, 10-9, Burnett and Jones came back with three-pointers over the next two minutes of play to push Missouri Valley into the lead at 15-10.  Missouri Valley went scoreless over the next four minutes, and Grand View reclaimed the advantage at 16-15.  Floyd broke the MVC drought with a three-pointer, midway through the half, then came down with an offensive rebound and added a layup to put the lead at 20-16 with eight minutes remaining.  Freshman James Porter (St. Louis, Mo.) came in with a layup, and Jones made a three-point shot.  The stretch of play was capped on another layup from Porter to increase the MVC lead to 29-22 at the five-minute mark.  Two made free throws from Ajanaku and another three-point basket from Jones extended the advantage to double-digits, 34-24.  Grand View was held scoreless over a nearly four-minute stretch late in the half, but added the final field goals before the break to cut the MVC lead down to 34-28 at halftime.

Play in the second half started with a quick field goal from Ajanaku to extend the lead, but MVC went scoreless over a three-minute stretch as Grand View cut its deficit down to 36-35.  Jones ended the scoreless drought for Missouri Valley with a layup nearly four minutes into play, but GVU went on a 7-2 run over the next three minutes to move in front, 42-39.  Grand View continued to increase its lead over the next stretch of play, and sat on top by double-digits, 56-44, just past the nine-minute mark.  Ajanaku finished off a three-point play one minute later, and Burnett added two made free throws to put the deficit at 58-51, as the clock went under seven minutes remaining.  Senior J'Luan Patterson (Belleville, Ill.) came up with a steal and a fast-break layup to bring MVC into a 59-56 score at the five-minute mark.  Grand View stretched its lead to 61-56 moments later, but Missouri Valley responded with seven-straight points, including four points from Senior Cawhan Smith (Collinsville, Ill.) and a three-pointer made by Jones to send the team back on top, 63-61 with three minutes to play.  Missouri Valley held to its lead until the final minute of play.  Burnett sank two free throws to make it a 68-64 score, but four made free throws from GVU in the closing moments tied the teams at 68-68.  The final possession of regulation for MVC ended in a turnover, and a last-second shot from Grand View did not get off in time.  The teams went into overtime tied at 68-68.

Missouri Valley claimed an early lead to start the overtime period, as a layup from Ajanaku made it a 71-70 score with just over one minute played.  Grand View responded and put together an 8-0 run over the next three minutes.  Smith added a layup to end the GVU run, and Floyd added a basket to make it an 80-75 deficit in the final seconds of the contest.  However, Missouri Valley was unable to cut its deficit any lower, and fell by a final score of 82-75.

Jones led with 18 points and added four steals.  Smith had 14 points, four assists and four steals, while Burnett totaled 12 points and seven rebounds.  Ajanaku added 11 points and six rebounds.  Missouri Valley held a 36-35 edge in rebounds and forced 21 turnovers.

Missouri Valley drops to 11-15 overall and 10-12 in the Heart. Grand View improves to 14-12 on the season and 12-10 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's and women's basketball teams will travel to Parkville, Mo., for a Heart doubleheader against Park (Mo.), Wednesday evening.  Women's game at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.

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About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.