Hot-shooting Bruins stay unbeaten with 90–70 win over Comets

Box Score
Frontier Standings

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Behind five double-figure scorers and another efficient offensive performance, the Bellevue University men's basketball team earned a 90–70 Frontier Conference victory over Mayville State University on Sunday afternoon at the BU Fieldhouse.

Bellevue University, which is receiving votes in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll, improves to 10–0 overall and 5–0 in Frontier play with the win. The Bruins shot 53.3 percent from the field and 45.5 percent from beyond the arc (10-for-22) while holding the Comets to 50 percent shooting overall and just 2-for-10 from long range. MSU stayed close with a 42–23 edge in bench scoring, but BU held a slight 32–31 advantage on the glass and generated a 16–6 edge in second-chance points.

RJ Smith led the Bruins with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting and added five rebounds and three assists. Jermaine Haliburton finished with 16 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three made 3's, while Jaden Phillips contributed 15 points, six boards, and three assists. Mathok Mathok added 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting with five rebounds and a block, and Liam Thompson chipped in eight points, four rebounds, four assists, and two steals.

MSU was paced by Darius Brant, who scored a game-high 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting with five rebounds. Isaiah Smith added 10 points and four rebounds, Malik Siggers posted 10 points and five assists, and Christian Bowen-Webb tallied 10 points on 6-of-6 free-throw shooting with two rebounds and four assists.

How It Happened

Mayville State scored the game's first basket, and the teams traded early scores to a 10–10 tie at the 14:55 mark of the first half. Bellevue made 8 of its first 10 shots, including 4-of-6 from long range, to take a 21–10 lead following an 11–0 run.

The Bruins continued to separate behind balanced scoring and perimeter shooting. BU was 7-of-10 from beyond the arc in the first half, with Haliburton and JJ Montgomery each knocking down multiple 3's and Smith and Mathok converting inside. The lead swelled to 35–16 during a 25–6 stretch, and Mathok's put-back layup pushed the advantage to 46–21 with 3:02 remaining. Phillips drove for a late basket to send Bellevue into halftime with a 51–28 lead.

Brant opened the second half with a personal 6–0 run, converting three straight jumpers to trim the deficit to 51–34. Phillips answered with free throws to steady BU, and the Bruins maintained a comfortable margin behind Smith's mid-range scoring and a Haliburton 3 that made it 65–43 with 9:58 left.

The Comets made their final push at the free-throw line, with Bowen-Webb converting four straight foul shots as MSU pulled within 73–60 at the 5:37 mark. Bellevue responded with a closing stretch keyed by its backcourt and frontcourt combination: Mathok scored inside, Smith knocked down a jumper, Haliburton finished a fast-break layup, and Thompson connected on a jumper to grow the lead back to 83–64 with 3:38 to play. The Bruins closed it out from there, with Montgomery adding his third 3 of the game and Haliburton scoring again in transition to seal the 20-point win.

Top Performers

Bellevue University
• RJ Smith: 19 points, 7-of-10 FG, 5-of-7 FT, 5 rebounds, 3 assists
• Jermaine Haliburton: 16 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3-of-7 from 3-point range
• Jaden Phillips: 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists
• Mathok Mathok: 10 points, 4-of-5 FG, 5 rebounds, 1 block
• Liam Thompson: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
• JJ Montgomery: 9 points, 3-of-7 from 3-point range, 3 assists, 2 steals
• Akol Ngor: 7 points, 2-of-3 FG, 1-of-1 from 3-point range, 2-of-2 FT, 1 block

Mayville State
• Darius Brant: 22 points, 10-of-13 FG, 1-of-2 from 3-point range, 1-of-2 FT, 5 rebounds
• Isaiah Smith: 10 points, 3-of-11 FG, 4-of-4 FT, 4 rebounds, 3 steals
• Malik Siggers: 10 points, 3-of-6 FG, 1-of-2 from 3-point range, 3-of-4 FT, 3 rebounds, 5 assists
• Christian Bowen-Webb: 10 points, 2-of-8 FG, 6-of-6 FT, 2 rebounds, 4 assists

Inside the Numbers

• BU shot 53.3 percent from the field (32-for-60) and 45.5 percent from long range (10-for-22), while MSU finished at 50.0 percent overall (27-for-54) and 20.0 percent from beyond the arc (2-for-10).
• The Bruins held a 32–31 rebounding edge, including a 9–6 advantage on the offensive glass that led to a 16–6 margin in second-chance points.
• Bellevue converted 24 points off 16 MSU turnovers, compared to 9 points off 9 BU giveaways for the Comets.
• BU held a 44–42 edge in points in the paint and outscored MSU 23–4 in fast-break points.
• MSU's bench outscored BU's reserves 42–23, but the Bruins' starters combined for 67 points.
• The game featured two ties and five lead changes, all in the early stages before Bellevue's decisive first-half run.

Up Next

The Bruins will travel to Great Falls, Mont., next Friday, Dec. 12, for an 8 p.m. (CT) contest at the University of Providence inside the McLaughlin Center Gymnasium.