Moberly, MO

A long drive got longer Monday night for Reivers Basketball to close a tough three-game road swing.

After trudging the nearly 300 miles to Moberly from Council Bluffs in freshly fallen snow, IWCC got off to a 4-0 start in the first quarter against Moberly Area, but the home team flexed their muscle, countering with a 9-0 run of their own to take a 15-10 lead after one.

MACC (4-1) would balloon their lead to as many as 10 in the 2nd quarter before the Reivers whittled it down to four to close the first half at 32-28.

"We did a great job executing our defensive game plan to slow them down in the first half," said Head Coach Lindsey Vande Hoef, "they're in the Top 10 nationally in scoring offense, but our offense struggled as well."

The Reivers shot only 36% and turned the ball over 16 times in the first half.

A red-hot third quarter for the home squad put the 'Hounds up 61-40 after three and the Reivers (5-2) couldn't overcome the deficit in the 78-65 defeat.

"It's simple, we will not beat teams if we don't bring the effort and intensity for 40 minutes," added Vande Hoef.

Gabriella Smith and Isnelle Natabou each led the Reivers with 16 points, while Ruba Abo Hasheh scored 12 and added four assists.

A bright spot in the game was the effort from the free-throw line, IWCC hit 20-22 attempts from the stripe, including Natabou's six of seven performance.

"I was excited to see Izzy (Natabou) step up and get looks inside," Vande Hoef said, "she was a big reason we were in the game."

The Reivers next games come on Valentine's Day weekend as Marshalltown and Southeastern come to town.  Saturday's game versus the Tigers tips at 1:00 pm, while Sunday against Southeastern is also a matinee.

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