The Washburn men’s basketball team fell to the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats after a furious second half rally that brought the game within two points after a 19-point deficit that came just short of winning the game Jan. 16.

Both teams entered the contest 10-5, Northwest Missouri 7-3 in the MIAA and Washburn 6-4.

The game started with a pair of turnovers for the Ichabods which led to turnover points both times for the Bearcats, who took the lead early with a 9-2 run. After eight minutes the lead expanded to 12 (19-7, Bearcats). The Ichabods ended the first half with a rally and last second 3-pointer by Cameron Wiggins, pulling the deficit to 10, 21-31.

Washburn started the second half with a 5-point run, then gave up a 4-point run to the Bearcats, making it 26-35. From there the game was much closer, bringing it within two, 39-41 — the Bearcat’s smallest lead of the game with 9:30 left in the second half.

The Ichabods would not come within one possession the remainder of the game, giving up a 6-point run after a Bearcat timeout and falling back to an 8-point deficit. The game ended 56-61 after the rally came up just short for the Ichabods.

Two Ichabods had double-digit points: Randall Smith with 22 after shooting 42 percent from the field and Javion Blake with 10. Cameron Wiggins was next with 9 points and struggled shooting despite his buzzer-beater, shooting 27 percent from the field. Brady Skeens also contributed for the Ichabods with an outstanding 13 rebounds.