Photo: Frankie Debari
BY: ANDREW HALE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Eleven St. Bonaventure men’s basketball players scored in the team’s 76-54 rout over Division II Mansfield University of Pennsylvania Wednesday.
The Bonnies (5-0, 0-0 A-10) began the game on an 8-0 run, making three of four shots. The Mountaineers (1-4, 0-0 PSAC) closed the distance and eventually cut the lead to one at 20-19 with 8:50 minutes in the first half.
The two teams exchanged punches, trading buckets throughout the opening half. Mansfield got the final laugh as freshman guard Lleyton Fried’s layup beat the first-half buzzer to cut Bonaventure’s lead to 36-30.
The Bonnies shot 46% from the field and 29% from 3-point range in the first half. The Mountaineers shot 50% and 44%, respectively.
“I thought the first half we really didn’t come out and play the way I expect us to play, with the energy and effort and enthusiasm,” Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt said. “I thought we were lethargic. The zone had something to do with it. We’re not a great shooting team. We got to get better at that.”
Bonaventure began to pull away early in the second half after a dunk from graduate center Noel Brown with 17 minutes left put the Bonnies up by 10.
The Bonnies maintained control of the lead throughout the second half and emptied their bench with a few minutes left.
Sophomore guard Miles Rose appeared in a game for the first time this season, totaling four points in four minutes and shooting 100% from the field.
The Bonnies won the battle under the basket, scoring 46 of their 76 total points in the paint, compared to the Mountaineers 20.
Bonaventure shot 44% from the field in the second half and 27% from three. The Bonnies held Mansfield to 8-26 from the field and 4-14 from beyond the arc in the second half.
“Our whole philosophy or our identity this year has to be defense and rebounding and getting offense off of our defense,” Schmidt said. “We don’t have great shooters; we don’t have great scores. We’ve got to do it collectively, but we got to do it from a defensive perspective.”
Bonnies senior guard Chance Moore recorded a double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
“[I’m] just trying to do what coach says – be aggressive,” Moore said. “Don’t just settle for the three, for the jumper, [but] crash every time. Block out and just be the aggressor on both ends.”
Junior guard Dasonte Bowen scored nine points and led the team in assists with eight.
“I thought in the second half, Dasonte [Bowen] did a much better job of pressuring the ball and it starts with the quarterback,” Schmidt said. “It starts with the point guard. It starts up front, and he did a good job of pressuring and getting some enthusiasm and some excitement.”
Mansfield graduate guard Owen Chambers led the Mountaineers with 11 points, shooting 57% from the field and 3-5 from three.
Bonaventure plays its third and final game of the homestand Sunday, facing Bryant University. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. and will air live on ESPN+. Radio listeners can tune into the game via the Bonnies Online Network.
halea22@bonaventure.edu
