Bruins claw past feisty PC, 58-55

ABERDEEN, S.D. -- The Bellevue University men's basketball team overcame 15 turnovers to survive a tough road game with a 58-55 victory at Presentation College on Friday evening in North Star Athletic Association play.

Bellevue improves to 11-7 overall and 3-1 in league play. Presentation, losers of now six in a row, drops to 5-11 and 0-4 in the conference.

Both teams struggled in the early going. By the media timeout at 8:34, the Bruins led 14-8 with the difference coming by a pair of three-pointers from reigning NSAA Player of the Week Paulo Araujo.

Presentation worked themselves back into the game with an 8-0 run out of the media timeout to take a 16-14 lead with four different players scoring in the run.

Bellevue countered with five-straight thanks to a pair of free throws from Araujo and an old-fashioned three-point play by Keenami Maggard.

After a series of empty Bruin possession, Tyrese Eugene knocked down a corner three to put PC up 23-21 with 1:57 to play before a BU timeout. PC led 26-23 before Vinny Belcaster drained a deep trifecta to tie things up at the break.

Araujo led Bellevue with eight points and Maggard added seven at the break while Jackson Becker paced the Saints with six first half points.

The second half began similarly to the first with both teams struggling to find the bottom of the net. Despite those offensive woes, Bellevue managed to take a narrow lead early in the half and hang onto it.

Notably, Bellevue worked their way into the bonus by the 10:33 mark as the Saints were whistled for their seventh foul of the half.

By the midway point of the half, Presentation tied the game at 40-apiece.

Araujo drained a deep three to put Bellevue back in front, 43-40, ahead of a PC timeout. The Saints cut the deficit to a single point, but Araujo again hit a big trey, this time off a pass from Vinny Belcaster with 4:42 remaining to push the BU lead to 49-45.

With 1:42 to play, Eugene hit a three from the win to pull the Saints to within one, 54-53 but Belcaster answered at the other end with a driving layup as the Bruins went back up by three.

After Jackson Becker made a put back layup, Belcaster missed for BU allowing PC a chance to take the lead but they turned the ball over. Following a Saint foul, Araujo hit a pair of free throws with 14.5 seconds left to give BU a 58-55 lead.

Isaiah Cabrera turned down on open layup in favor of a desperation three that clanged off the iron and into the hands of Araujo.

Araujo finished with a game-high 22 for Bellevue and Belcaster joined him in double figures with 15 to go along with six boards. Keenami Maggard scored eight points and Justin Motley pulled down eight rebounds to lead the way on the glass.

Becker scored 13 and grabbed six rebounds to lead PC. Cabrera and Ontario Chapman joined in double figures with 11 and 10, respectively.

Bellevue meets rival Mayville State University tomorrow at 5 p.m. The Bruins and Comets have accounted for each of the past six NSAA Tournament Championships and at least one has won the conference regular-season in five of the past six seasons.