Photo: Frank DeBari / The Bona Venture
BY ANDREW HALE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team defeated Division III Alfred 63-39 in Wednesday’s annual exhibition game.
The Bonnies starting lineup featured four newcomers: junior guards Jaxon Edwards, Dasonte Bowen and Lajae Jones, alongside senior guard Melvin Council Jr.
Graduate center and co-captain Noel Brown was the lone returner starting for Bonaventure.
Fellow co-captain Council Jr. led the way for Bonnies, finishing with a team-high 10 points and a game-high five steals.
“I just wanted to make sure the guys took the nerves out of them and be with me just like how I am with them,” said Council Jr.
Edwards and Bowen both finished with eight points.
“We’ve been together for a couple of months now, but it’s a brand new team, and that was only our second time getting out there playing against some new faces,” said Bowen. “So as we go on, I’m confident that we’ll put it together, and the offense we’ll start to look a lot more fluid.”
Poor shooting defined the first half of the exhibition. The Bonnies shot 12-33 from the field and 0-8 from three. Similarly, the Saxons shot 6-23 from the field and 1-14 from three.
“We struggled offensively in the first half,” Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt said. “I thought we had some open shots. We couldn’t make any shots and then the rim gets smaller and smaller.”
However, shooting improved for the Bonnies in the second half as the team shot 51.6% from the field.
Jones made the Bonnies’ first 3-pointer of the game with 15:05 left in the second half. Redshirt sophomore guard Jonah Hinton shot 2-3 from 3-point range in the second half.
“The nerves got out of our system,” Schmidt said. “I thought in the second half, we played much better, both on the offensive and defensive end. We got points off of turnovers, and that’s what we have to do.”
Given a poor shooting performance tonight, Schmidt said he expects the team to carry a defensive identity this season.
“When you shoot 3-17, you better be a good defensive team,” Schmidt said. “[Defense] has to be one of our strengths. As it’s always been, our staple has to be our defense. If you can defend, then you have a chance in every game no matter how you play an offense.”
With the starters still in question for Monday’s opening game, Schmidt said he has an idea of who’s going to play.
“It’s just too early, but we know the guys that are going to play,” Schmidt said. “We’re going to have 10 to 11 guys, so everybody’s going hopefully see the day and the sun.”
Bonaventure plays its first game of the season against California State University, Northridge Monday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+, and radio listeners can tune into the game via the Bonnies Online Network.
halea22@bonaventure.edu
