Northwest Missouri State mounted a furious comeback from a 23-point deficit, briefly took the lead, but couldn't hang on as Pittsburg State came out on top 89-77 Saturday afternoon.
The Bearcats (4-20, 2-13 MIAA) dug an early hole, trailing the Gorillas 35-12 just 10 minutes into the game.
Northwest responded with a 24-0 run that kept Pitt State scoreless for over seven minutes. Ja'Vion Byers connected on a three-pointer that capped the run and pushed the Bearcats ahead 36-35. The Gorillas quickly answered with a three of their own to go back up by two and didn't let the lead go the rest of the game.
Byers paced Northwest with a career-high 23 points. He made four-of-seven three-point attempts on the day.
Luke Moustakas finished with 17 points, and Jack Ratigan added 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Northwest is on the road Thursday at 7:30pm against Northeastern State. Pregame on KXCV 90.5 and KRNW 88.9 begins at 7pm.