If the Emporia State-Washburn women’s game was the main event, then the men’s game ended up becoming the circus afterward.
Washburn picked up three technical fouls during an 88-second stretch in the second half, and ESU took full advantage in an 88-74 victory Saturday afternoon.
“It’s the intensity of the rivalry,” ESU guard Donta Watson said. “When you get in an intense moment like that, you’ll probably say things or do things you normally wouldn’t do.”
Most of the entertainment came from Washburn coach Bob Chipman, who received the team’s second technical foul after shooting a dirty look at an official.
After marching to the scorer’s table to scream at the MIAA director of officials, he was pulled back from the referees by guard Sergio Negrin.
Chipman wasn’t finished with his theatrics. He took off his suit coat and flung it into the sixth row behind him before taking off his tie and chucking it as well.
“It was just a joke,” ESU guard Wes Book said. “They might not have been getting some calls, but it happens in basketball. You’ve just got to keep your composure, and I felt like they lost it a little bit and just went over the top.”
Chipman finally rolled up his sleeves and gave some mock encouragement to the officials, who had saddled his team with 14 fouls to ESU’s two in the opening 8:38 of the second half.
“I just wish it could continue to be a game,” Chipman said. “They were beating us with good play, but I just wish it could have still been a game.”
WU forwards Frank Phifer and Dylan Channel also picked up T’s, with Watson connecting on all six of the gift free throws.
The Hornets used a 20-4 run during the stretch to turn a tie score into a 69-53 advantage.
“It’s pretty ironic, because at halftime coach (David Moe) talked about how we needed to stop complaining about the referees and calls and that we were going to have to deal with it,” Book said. “In the second half, Washburn couldn’t deal with it, and they imploded.”
ESU laid it on from there, with DeAndre Townsend contributing seven points in a 13-1 spurt that gave the Hornets their largest lead at 82-59 with 4:17 remaining. Moe emptied his bench a minute later.
At halftime, ESU had only three free throws and committed 11 fouls to Washburn’s eight.
“We’ve all been through that. What you can’t do is hang your head,” Moe said. “You need to handle adversity and can’t let it put you in a tailspin.”
The Hornets finished 23-of-31 from the free-throw line, while Washburn had only 14 attempts.
Watson led ESU, scoring 28 points on 7-of-15 shooting. He also made 5 of his 9 three-point attempts.
The senior said he had been eager to get on the court after Wednesday’s 91-88 loss to Pittsburg State. In that game, Watson lost the ball in the final seconds when ESU had a chance to tie the score.
“I just wanted to come out and be aggressive and not let that mistake against Pittsburg State haunt me today,” Watson said. “It’s easy to lose your mental edge when a mistake like that happens. Today, I just wanted to come out and have confidence.”
Townsend added 14, while Book had 11 despite shooting just three shots from the floor.
With the win, Moe picked up his 100th victory as coach of the Hornets. His record is 100-66 in six seasons with ESU.
Washburn (8-17) dropped into a tie for last place in the conference and will need some help to avoid missing the MIAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.
“I hope they get into the MIAA Tournament — I’ve played with a lot of those guys,” Book said, “but I definitely didn’t want them to get a win today.”
ESU (20-4, 11-4 MIAA) will have a quick turnaround tonight, as it will take on No. 8 Central Missouri at White Auditorium.
The game is a makeup from Jan. 13 when the contest was postponed because of icy roads.
The Hornets lost the first matchup, 88-79, in Warrensburg, Mo., nine days ago.
EMPORIA STATE men 88, WASHBURN 74
Washburn 36 38 — 74
No. 19 Emporia State 37 51 — 88
WASHBURN (8-17, 4-12 MIAA)
Sisk 4-7 3-3 11; Fisher 3-5 3-4 10; Phifer 4-9 2-3 10; Byers 4-6 0-0 9; Meile 3-7 0-0 8; Negrin 2-2 1-2 6; Hein 2-7 0-0 6; Hargett 2-5 0-0 5; Channel 1-2 2-2 4; Williams 1-5 0-0 3; Sy 1-1 0-0 2; Head 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-56 11-14 74.
EMPORIA STATE (20-4, 11-4 MIAA)
Watson 7-15 9-10 28; Townsend 5-9 2-2 14; Book 2-3 6-8 11; Fithian 4-7 1-3 9; Desir 4-6 1-3 9; Davison 2-5 1-2 5; Elliott 2-2 0-0 4; Tegtmeier 1-7 1-1 3; Andrews 1-2 0-0 3; Kelly 0-1 2-2 2; Holthaus 0-0 0-0 0; Moore 0-0 0-0 0; Allen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-57 23-31 88.
3-point goals — Washburn 9-25 (Meile 2-5; Hein 2-5; Negrin 1-1; Byers 1-2; Williamsl 1-4; Hargett 1-4; Fisher 1-2; Channel 0-1; Sisk 0-1), Emporia State 9-19 (Watson 5-9; Townsend 2-3; Book 1-2; Andrews 1-1; Tegtmeier 0-1; Kelly 0-1; Davison 0-2). Fouled out — Washburn: Phifer; Emporia State: None. Rebounds — Washburn 29 (Sisk 8); Emporia State 32 (Book 6). Assists — Washburn 16 (Sy 3; Meile 3), Emporia State 17 (Tegtmeier 6). Total fouls — Washburn 30, Emporia State 17. Att — 4056.