SEDALIA, Mo. — It's always sweet to get a win after a loss. However, Saturday's 76-71 win over State Fair Saturday was even sweeter than usual for the Three Rivers College men's basketball team.

Three days after losing sophomore guard Makur Jongkuch to a broken leg in a loss at Moberly Area, the Raiders scored the game's first 12 points and then held off several charges by the host Roadrunners for their second Region XVI win of the season.

"We got off to a 12-0 start because these guys are playing for Mak," Three Rivers head coach Brian Bess said.

Another reason Saturday's win was sweet is because it avenges a Dec. 7 overtime home loss to the Roadrunners that arguably was one of the low points of Three Rivers' season. That loss was part of a five-game Raiders losing streak to end 2022.

However, since the start of 2023, the Raiders (9-11, 2-3 XVI) have won four of their six games, including a 2-1 record against Region XVI competition.

Saturday night, Three Rivers shut out the Roadrunners for the game's first 5:29, building up a 12-0 lead. However, State Fair (7-14, 1-4) did not go away, whittling the lead down to 30-27 by the intermission.

The Raiders used a 9-1 spur midway through the second half to take a 58-46 lead on Hosana Kitenge's basket with 8:14 left in the game, but State Fair ran off eight points in a row to get back within four points.

The Roadrunners cut the Three Rivers lead to 69-67 with just over two minutes to go, but the Raiders made 13 of their 15 free throws on the night to preserve the win.

Mo Niang led the Raiders with 22 points, while Lamont Jackson and Hosana Kitenge each had 15, Mario Fleming had 14 and Caleb Young finished with 10. Young led Three River with seven rebounds, while Kitenge dished off a team-high six assists.

"Caleb Young and Mario Fleming had really good games for us," Bess said.

Dalton Gayman paced State Fair with 17 points, while Elijah Bernstein had 14, Jules Bikoy added 13 and Devon Ellis chipped in 11.

Three Rivers is back in action Saturday when it hosts Mineral Area in a Region XVI contest. Mineral Area won the first matchup 75-51 last month in Park Hills.

"It should be a better game," Bess said. "We have to handle their pressure. They are a really good defensive team."

Mike Buhler - Daily American Republic