Jonell Burton hammered home a thunderous dunk midway through the first half, a play that sparked life into the Lincoln Blue Tigers and triggered a rally.
Lincoln needed the energy from that play to carry them through the rest of the game. Instead, it barely got them the lead at halftime, and it didn't quite carry over into the second half.
"Their team did a great job of executing," Lincoln coach John Moseley said of Northeastern State following its 80-72 win Thursday at Jason Gym. "They ran something nearly every time down, they got the ball where they wanted to get it to, and we were unable to finish a couple of big possessions."
Burton's dunk with 8:17 left in the first half drew a foul. Prior to the basket, he had just two points, but he would finish with a game-high 31 for the Blue Tigers.
"I believe the game is a game of confidence," Moseley said. "The best players, even when they're not shooting it well, they believe the next shot's going to go in.
"Jonell's bread and butter has been getting to the cup. It was great to see him finish that play."
Burton made the ensuing free throw - he was 11-of-11 from the line - to cut the Northeastern State lead to 27-22. A minute later, that lead would be down to one.
Amariontez Ivory knocked down a 3-pointer with 2:47 left in the half to give Lincoln a 37-36 lead, its first of the game since 13-12. Ivory's basket was a rare one for the Blue Tigers, who finished the game 5-of-25 from 3-point range.
"Some of them were really good shots in the flow of what we do," Moseley said. " The interesting part is we were at home. We play here, this is our home gym."
Lincoln made just 1-of-10 shots from 3 after halftime. Ivory finished 1-of-7 from 3 and Ni'Sean Rigmaiden missed all seven of his attempts.
The Blue Tigers went into halftime with a 41-40 lead, one they desperately clinged to early in the second half. Grant Olsson's three-point play made the score 46-42, but Northeastern State's Bradley George made four straight free throws to tie the game.
Josh Ihek jammed home an alley oop from Caleb Smith with 12:12 to play, giving the RiverHawks a 55-53 lead, one they held for the rest of the game.
Lincoln shot just 28.6 percent from the field the rest of the game. The Blue Tigers also shot 9-of-11 from the free-throw line in the first half, but that dropped to 12-of-19 in the second half.
"They made their free throws at times where it kept them in control of the game," Moseley said of the RiverHawks, who have won four straight games. "At the big points of the game where it's a two- or three-point lead and they're shooting, they were able to make it go back to four or five."
Lincoln had a chance to get back into the game with about seven minutes left. In an attempt to make a steal, the loose ball made its way into the hands of Smith, who knocked down a 3 to push Northeastern State's lead to 65-59.
"You get a steal there and who knows what happens," Moseley said.
Northeastern State (10-8, 4-5 MIAA) shot 49 percent from the field, including 52 percent in the second half. Smith led the RiverHawks with 28 points, making four 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes of the game. He also grabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double.
Tanner Mouse added 18 points and Ihek came off the bench to post 13 points and 10 rebounds in the win for the RiverHawks.
"They run a dribble-drive motion and they were constantly keeping us on our heels," Moseley said.
Aside from Burton, Olsson was the only other Blue Tiger to reach double figures, scoring 15 points.
It was the first conference home loss for Lincoln (12-5, 5-3 MIAA), which will host Central Oklahoma on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.