Meeting the Central Missouri men's basketball team four days after a lopsided loss might not have done Lincoln any favors.
The Mules made that clear.
"I told the kids, I knew they were going to come ready to play," Lincoln coach John Redmond said after Central Missouri posted a 89-61 victory against the Blue Tigers in a Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association matchup Wednesday night at Jason Gym. "That's what happens when good teams get beat.
"They came to play well and we didn't - probably the worst we played all year. In fact, this is the worst we played all year."
After suffering an 80-68 loss to Northwest Missouri State on Saturday, Central Missouri (15-4, 7-3) held Lincoln (2-15, 0-9) to its second lowest scoring margin of the season.
The Blue Tigers, who have now lost nine straight, were just 18-of-48 from the field and were out-rebounded 35-18 against a Mules' defense that ranks second in the MIAA.
"They just outplayed us, and they're a good basketball team," Redmond said. "I'm not going to take anything away from them. I thought they did everything right - defensively and offensively. They executed and that's the key to basketball."
Lincoln placed two players in double figures as Joshua Buie scored 14 points and Mike Smith added 13 after seeing just 21 minutes of playing time to lead the Blue Tigers offensively.
Charles Hammork led four Central Missouri players in double figures with 15 points after going 6-for-6 from the field. Dillon Deck added 13 points, while Jordan Epps and TJ White combined for 24 of the Mules' 55 total bench points.
"If you have role players step up - that's what successful teams do. Their starters might not have had a great night, but their role players came in and did well."
Lincoln and Central Missouri were tied at 11 with 14:07 left to play in the first half, but the Mules used a 19-14 run to take a 30-15 lead with just more than seven minutes left before halftime.
Central Missouri entered the second half with a 44-28 advantage and the Mules used a 25-9 run in the first eight minutes to take a 69-37 lead with 11:30 left to play.
From there, Central Missouri maintained at least a 27-point lead before cruising to its 15th win this season.
"We didn't do anything right," Redmond said. "When it was back-and-forth (early in the first half) the leadership on the floor disappeared. That's important when you're playing a good team like this is that you have some leadership."
Central Missouri, which scored 18 second-chance points and 24 points off 14 Lincoln turnovers, was 29-of-48 from the field and sank 27-of-40 free throws.
Lincoln was 10-of-27 from behind the 3-point line, but only scored four second-chance points and 12 points off 12 Central Missouri turnovers.
The Blue Tigers, who have not won a game since Nov. 30, will take on Southwest Baptist at 3 p.m. Saturday.
"Until they learn to follow instructions, do what they're asked and follow our game plan, we're not going to get over the hump," Redmond said. "That's what it comes down to."