ST. JOSEPH - Lincoln junior Joshua Buie scored a game-high 35 points, but it wasn't enough as the Blue Tigers suffered a 99-71 loss to Missouri Western in a Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association matchup Wednesday night.
Buie, who was 12-of-19 from the field and 4-of-7 from behind the arc, also led Lincoln (2-17, 0-11) with four assists and three steals.
Jeremy Jackson scored 12 points for Lincoln, which was 26-of-59 from the field and 10-of-23 from the 3-point line.
The Blue Tigers could have used a few more stops on the defensive end.
Missouri Western (8-10, 3-7) placed four players in double figures after going 38-of-57 from the field and 6-of-13 from behind the arc. The Griffons also claimed a 39-19 rebounding advantage and scored 58 points in the paint.
Ryan Devers scored 24 points, while Colbert Cortrez added 16 to lead Missouri Western. Dareon Jones chipped in with 15 points and Charlie Marquardt finished with 14 for the Griffons, who handed Lincoln its 11 straight loss.
Missouri Western jumped out to a 16-6 lead early in the first half, but Buie scored five quick points to bring the Blue Tigers within five with 13:27 left before the break.
Lincoln wasn't able to get any closer.
Missouri Western outscored the Blue Tigers 20-5 over the next eight minutes to take a 20-point lead before entering the second half with a 51-30 advantage.
The Griffons didn't let up from there.
Missouri Western maintained at least a 20-point lead early in the second half and led by as many as 31 with 5:12 left to play.
Through the last three games, opponents are averaging 96.3 points against Lincoln's defense, which is ranked last in the MIAA.
Lincoln will be put to the test again Saturday when the Blue Tigers travel to Northwest Missouri for a 3:30 p.m. tip off. The Bearcats are currently in control of the MIAA with a 9-1 conference record.
III
ST. JOSEPH - The Lincoln's women's basketball team couldn't find any offense.
Missouri Western found just enough.
Lincoln managed six field goals in the game as the Griffons went on to post a 42-28 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association win on Wednesday night.
It was the second fewest points scored by Lincoln since the 2001-02 season when the Blue Tigers suffered a 56-23 loss to Incarnate World. Lincoln also tied a school record for the fewest points allowed in a loss.
Jennifer Rosado scored a game-high 13 points, while Quiessence Price added eight points to lead the Blue Tigers, who shot a season-worst 6-of-35 (17.1 percent) from the field.
Lincoln went 15-of-22 (68.2 percent) from the free-throw line to account for more than half its points against Missouri Western, which also struggled offensively.
JaQuitta Dever and Sharniece Lewis both scored 10 points off the bench for the Griffons, who were 15-of-48 (31.3 percent) from the field and 10-of-19 (52.6 percent) from the charity stripe.
Missouri Western scored 16 points off 24 Lincoln turnovers and claimed a 39-32 rebounding advantage to help hand the Blue Tigers their 11th straight loss.
Lincoln scored the first two points of the game on a layup by Price, but the Blue Tigers trailed the rest of the way.
Missouri Western went on an 11-0 run to take nine-point lead with 12:21 left in the first half before entering the break with a 22-12 advantage.
The Griffons scored the first seven points of the second half and Lincoln was never able to get anything going on the offensive end.
Missouri Western led by as many as 19 with 4:53 left in the second half, but the Blue Tigers were able to close out the game on a 6-1 run.
Lincoln will be back on the road Saturday when the Blue Tigers take on Northwest University at 1:30 p.m. in Maryville.