February 5, 2005
[Gamenotes] [Final Stats]
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Sheldon Pace led all players with 18 points and six assists to lead the Bearcats to a 79-59 victory and improve to 8-2 at home on the season. |
BOLIVAR, MO. ... Coming off of their first season sweep over any opponent since the 2001-02 season, the Bearcats continued to roll, defeating Missouri Western (11-10 / 5-7 MIAA) 79-59 at the Meyer Sports Center on Saturday night. With the win, SBU now finds themselves moving up the MIAA standings and is now currently tied with the Griffons and Missouri Southern.
Sheldon Pace, for the fourth consecutive game, led all Bearcats with a game high 18 points off another impressive performance from the field, shooting 5-8 and 4-6 from beyond the arc. Pace, the conference's assist leader, led all players with 6 assists.
Also stepping up for Southwest Baptist (11-10 / 5-7 MIAA) was Deontra Levi with 13 points, Martez Young with 10, and Cedric Ousley with 9.
SBU set the tone early and often in the first half, using a 11-4 run to give the Bearcats a seven point lead with 10:55 remaining in the first half and then turned around and ran the table again sparking a 12-1 run to give Southwest Baptist a 33-18 lead with only 3:31 to go before the half.
In the second half, Missouri Western cut the lead down to single digits three times, but before anyone could get any idea of a comeback, SBU slammed the door shut with key three pointers at crucial times from Pace and Ousley until the Bearcats applied the knockout punch with a 22-10 run to end the game that spanned over eight minutes.
MWSC leading scorer Demarius Bolds, who earlier in the season put up 22 points on the Bearcats, was held to only nine points and committed a game high seven turnovers.
Southwest Baptist made a strong push to reclaim their top spot in the nation for three-point shooting by knocking down 14 treys and 33 in the last three games. On the opposite end, SBU's defense held the Griffons to only 12 percent from the the three-point line off of 2-16 shooting and converted 28 points off of 21 turnovers.
The Bearcats return to action on Thursday when they face off against #22 Washburn in Bolivar, Mo. at the Meyer Sports Center. The Ichabods rallied late in the second half to deny Southwest Baptist an upset victory in Topeka, KS. last month. Tipoff is slated for 7:45 pm.
NOTES: The Jane and Ken Meyer Wellness and Sports Center was dedicated in between the
women’s and men’s game. The Meyer Wellness and Sports Center was a 13 million dollar project.
