The Raiders did have some highlight-worthy plays in a 61-49 victory over Missouri-Kansas City — a sweet dish by Chrishawn Hopkins in the first half, any one of the four blocks by Young and a couple other dunks by Vest — but they also had some cringe-worthy moments.
The Kangaroos turned up the pressure in the second half after falling behind by 19. The Raiders couldn’t handle it. In one three-minute span, they committed five turnovers: three by Hopkins and two by Reggie Arceneaux.
“(Kansas City) played like an animal that was wounded,” Donlon said. “They took a lot of chances. I was trying to run clock and make them guard half-court. I probably should have let our guys attack through some of that. But some of our passes … we just have to improve on our decision making.”
Darling's game: Wright State senior Cole Darling showed the form that made him a preseason All-Horizon League pick in the second half. He hit back-to-back shots after Kansas City had cut Wright State's lead to 45-38 with under 10 minutes to play.
Darling finished with a team-high 15 points. He scored a total of 18 points in the previous five games.
“I’ve been in a little funk lately,” Darling said. “I’ve been working with the coaches to try to get out of it. I think I took a step in the right direction.”
Analyzing WSU: Ken Pomeroy's website, KenPom.com, which provides "advanced analysis of college basketball," gave the Raiders an 83 percent chance of winning Saturday and predicted a 10-point win — not too far off.
Based on results through the first 13 games, the site predicts the Raiders will finish the season 15-16 with an 8-8 mark in the Horizon League.
Looking ahead: The Raiders don't play again until 3 p.m. Dec. 29 against Bowling Green at the Nutter Center.
The Falcons (5-5) beat Morehead State 67-61 in their last game Dec. 15 and host Detroit at 2 p.m. today. Wright State lost 74-69 at Morehead State on Dec. 2.
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