No. 19 MSU beats West Texas A&M 86-81 in NCAA II Regional

WARRENSBURG, Mo - Midwestern State University senior Eric Dawson saved the best scoring game of his career for the NCAA Division II Tournament, scoring 33 points with 10 rebounds and three blocked shots in leading the Mustangs to an 86-81 triumph over West Texas A&M in the NCAA Division II South Central Region quarterfinals Saturday at UCM Multipurpose Building.

MSU (24-6) defeated WT (18-11) for the third straight time, a first since 2000 when MSU went to the regional finals.

Dawson, a first-team All-South Central Region performer, collected 25 points in the second half on his way to a new career scoring high.á The 6-9 senior from San Antonio/Sam Houston nailed 13-of-20 shots from the floor and 7-of-9 from the foul line as he tallied his 22nd double-double to lead Divisions I and II in that category.

Senior Drew Coffman added 21 points for the Mustangs, while senior Chad Rickett connected for 16 points.
Junior Christopher Reay grabbed eight rebounds and junior Chris Davis seven as to assist Dawson on the boards.
West Texas A&M got 21 points from South Central Region Co-Player of the Year Damien Lolar who also led the Buffs with seven boards.á Senior Kevin "Chip" Green added 18 points, while Chris Hinz dropped in 17 for the Buffaloes.
WT got the first points of the game on a Hinz layup, marking the first time in four games that the Mustangs had trailed in a game.

MSU broke open the close contest for a time with an 18-5 run near the end of the first half to take a 12-point advantage.

The Buffs answered to close the gap to eight at 38-30 when halftime rolled around.

WT came out of the locker room hot, opening the half with a 7-0 run in the first three minutes to pull back within one. MSU went on a 12-5 run to take an eight-point advantage with 13:57 to play only to have the Buffs retaliate with a13-5 run to tie the game at 55 with 10:55 remaining when Green buried a three-pointer.

The squads traded the lead until the last four-and-a half minutes.
WT grabbed a 64-63 advantage with 4:34 remaining on a Lolar layup, but the Mustangs quickly answered.
Coffman got a jumper for a 65-64 lead with 4:13 to play and after a missed three-pointer, Rickett sliced through the lane for a layup that gave MSU a three-point lead.

After senior Rod Jacobs blocked a Pierre Barlow jumper, the rebound by Dawson of a missed three started the parade to the foul line for MSU.

Dawson hit the charity tosses with 3:03 to play and started a string of 15 consecutive made free throws for the Mustangs. Dawson was 5-of-5 in the stretch, Coffman 6-of-6, and Rickett 4-of-4 in that time frame which never allowed the Buffaloes to really get back in it.

The Mustangs advance to Sunday's regional semifinal to face No. 11 Southeastern Oklahoma State at 5 p.m.á Southeastern defeated Emporia State 79-66 in the other afternoon semifinal.