by Mikael DeSanto
Sports Assignment Editor
The St. Bonaventure University men’s basketball team finished its time in the Lone Star Showcase with an 89-63 win over Pepperdine, Wednesday night.
The win was the team’s second consecutive, having beaten Central Michigan 102-71 the night before, which was also a part of the Lone Star Showcase.
The Bonnies went up 16-4 to start the game, with each of the starters chipping in at least two points. But Pepperdine slowly made a comeback, mostly behind the play of senior guard Lamond Murray Jr., at one point cutting the lead to three.
Pepperdine followed up by taking a 28-27 lead, though this would be their only lead of the game. The teams then traded baskets for the rest of the first half, with the score being 42-40 in favor of the Bonnies.
However, after Pepperdine tied the game at 44 in the second half, the Bonnies began to pull away.
The turning point in the game came around the 15:30-16:00 period. During that time, the Bonnies hit back-to-back threes by junior guards Matt Mobley and Jaylen Adams, which gave the Bonnies a six point lead.
Though Pepperdine would come a bit closer to the lead, the Bonnies inevitably out-paced their opponent and went on a 14-0 run from 7:18 until 1:53, when Pepperdine scored its next basket.
Both teams would muster little more offense and the Bonnies ran down the clock to secure their victory.
Murray Jr. led Pepperdine in scoring for the game with 24 points, along with five rebounds, two steals and two blocks. They also got 10 point performances from freshman forward Craig LeCense and senior guard Jeremy Major.
The Bonnies leading scorers were Mobley with 24 and Adams with 22, with Mobley also grabbing 10 rebounds for a double-double. Senior forward Denzel Gregg also had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
The Bonnies shot 50.7 percent from the field, while Pepperdine shot 38.2 percent from the field. The Bonnies also topped Pepperdine in three-point shooting percentage: 50 percent for the Bonnies and 47.1 percent for Pepperdine.
The Bonnies also scored 19 points off Pepperdine’s 11 turnovers.
It was Pepperdine’s second loss this season, dropping to 4-2, while the Bonnies broke their neutral record, improving to 3-2 on the year.
The Bonnies will now head home and will next take the court on Nov. 30 when they take on Siena at the Reilly Center at 8 p.m., part of a doubleheader with the women’s team, who will play Stony Brook at 5:30 p.m.
desantmj13@bonaventure.edu
