ST. LOUIS, Mo. -The Webster University men's basketball team was back in action tonight when they traveled to Fontbonne (Mo.) University to take on the Griffins in the SLIAC Men's Basketball Semifinals. The fourth seeded Gorloks were defeated by the top seeded Griffins by a final score of 69-60 to end their season with a 13-14 overall record. With the win, the Griffins will advance to the SLIAC Final where they will face the third seeded Spalding (Ky.) University Golden Eagles.

Webster went 25-for-55 (45.5%) from the floor and 6-for-16 (37.5%) from behind the arc. They were outrebounded by the Griffins by a final count of 44-38 with eight rebounds coming on the offensive end. They forced the Griffins to turn the ball over 13 times in the game and blocked five shots. Webster also dished out eight assists while scoring 34 of their 60 points in the paint.

The Gorloks came out in the first half and had a tough time scoring the ball early as they found themselves trailing 7-2 in the first four minutes of the game. Webster would settle in as the game progressed and would cut the lead to four midway through the half. The Griffins would extend their lead back out to 11 in the final minutes of the period, but Webster would outscore Fontbonne 5-2 down the stretch and the Griffins would take a 34-26 lead into the locker room.

Webster came out of the locker room and quickly started the half on a 7-1 run to cut the lead to two. Fontbonne would push their lead back out to seven over the next few minutes, and then went on a 16-4 run to give themselves a 19-point advantage with eight minutes to play in the game. Despite being down, the Gorloks would come storming back and answered with a 20-2 run to cut the lead to just one with two minutes to play. Fontbonne would outscore the Gorloks 8-0 down the stretch and solidified their spot in the SLIAC Tournament Final.

Karl Moore Jr. led the way for Webster as he finished with 15 points and a game high 14 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. Jemard Sykes II also had a great game as he finished with a team high 18 points and seven rebounds while knocking down five threes. In addition, Justin Ugo finished with eight points while Booker Simmons added six.

With three blocks tonight, Karl Moore Jr. has reached 218 career blocks which surpasses Brad Bryan for the most career blocks in SLIAC history. Bryan played for MacMurray College from 1997 to 2000.

The loss tonight marks the end of the 2023-24 men's basketball season. The Gorloks ended the year with a 13-14 overall record and a 10-8 mark in conference play. The team will return to the court in the fall.