SATURDAY'S SCORES
Belmont 73, Queens (N.C.) 61 (Washington, D.C.)
Southeast Missouri 71, Kansas City 66 (Kansas City, Mo.)
SIUE 80, University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy 45 (St. Louis, Mo.)
BELMONT 73, QUEENS (N.C.) 61
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Behind 18 points from junior Luke Smith, Belmont University defeated Queens (NC), 73-61, Saturday to win the DC Paradise Jam championship.
After victories over Howard and George Mason, Belmont's (3-0) reward was no trip to paradise, more like a trip to the dentist. The physical and formidable No. 10-ranked NCAA Division II program nearly opened 2-0 themselves, featuring a mix of strong guard play and depth led by Kenny Dye.
Nevertheless, the Bruins overcame frigid outside shooting and foul trouble for junior Nick Muszynski to methodically pull away in the second half.
After Queens (NC) led 15-6, Belmont limited the Royals to one made field goal over a nearly 10 minute stretch, riding the post scoring of freshman Even Brauns (Iowa City, Iowa) in building a 35-20 lead.
Belmont led 37-29 at halftime.
Queens (NC) opened the second half on a 14-4 run to retake a 43-41 lead on two free throws from Malcolm Stevenson.
Sparked by a driving layin from junior Grayson Murphy, back-to-back 3-pointers from Smith and freshman JaCobi Wood highlighted a 10-0 Belmont run to push the Bruins back ahead by eight. Seven quick points from junior Caleb Hollander increased the margin to 14, 68-54, with 2:51 left.
Belmont limited Queens (NC) to 31 percent shooting while forcing 13 turnovers. Smith led three Bruins in double figures with 18 points, while Wood had 15 and Muszynski 12. Hollander grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds. Murphy nearly recorded his third consecutive double-double with nine points, 11 rebounds and five assists.
Stevenson led Queens (NC) with 19 points.
Belmont has won 15 consecutive games.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 71, KANSAS CITY 66
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Nygal Russell scored eight points, had a steal and knocked down two huge 3-pointers in the final 2:32 to give Southeast Missouri (1-0) a 71-66 win over Kansas City (2-1) Saturday afternoon at the Negro Baseball League Museum Tip-Off Classic.
Russell, who finished with 14 points as one of four SEMO players in double figures, hit both of his treys in the last minute to help get Brad Korn his first career win as the Redhawks head coach. A native of Houston, Texas, and only his ninth career start in three seasons at SEMO, Russell buried the first of his two clutch 3-pointers to put the Redhawks ahead, 68-64, after KC made it a one-point game.
Then, following two free throws by Franck Kamgain which narrowed the Redhawks lead to 68-66 with 33 seconds to go, Russell delivered the final blow with his long range bomb as the shot clock expired giving SEMO a 71-66 advantage.
KC inbounded the ball with two seconds left and Russell intercepted the pass to end his impressive game-changing effort down the stretch. SEMO led for all but 5:10 of the contest and was up, 37-31, at halftime.
Nebraska transfer Nana Akenten, who sat out the 2019-20 campaign due to NCAA Division I transfer regulations, scored 16 points off the bench in the game's opening 20 minutes. Akenten made 6-of-8 field goals and nailed 4-of-6 threes in the first half. He then launched a desperation shot behind the midcourt line of approximately 54 feet that went off the glass and into the basket to cap his big half.
While Akenten scored just one point in the second stanza, it was Chris Harris (9) and Nolan Taylor (8) who combined for half of the Redhawks second-half points. Harris converted a 4-point play with a little over six minutes remaining and Taylor made a nice shot down low to widen SEMO's lead to 62-52 at the 5:38 mark.
Harris led all scorers with a game-high 18 points. He shot 5-of-9 from the field, 3-of-6 from 3-point range and added five free throws in 35 minutes. Akenten followed close behind with 17 points, six rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks. His four 3-pointers were a game-high, as well. Russell added seven rebounds and scored the final eight points of the game, while Taylor chipped in 10 points and seven boards.
For the game, SEMO shot 48.8 percent (20-of-41) and knocked down 10 three-pointers (10-of-23) at a 43.5 percent clip. Additionally, the Redhawks were 21-of-35 at the free throw line.
Brandon McKissic led the Roos with 16 points.
For the first time in its NCAA Division I era (since 1991-92), SEMO won a season-opener outside of Cape Girardeau. The Redhawks improved to 11-19 all-time in their 30 years as a Division I program. SEMO also ended an 18-game losing streak away from home, picking up their first road victory since Feb. 16, 2019 (88-79, at Eastern Illinois).
SIUE 80, HEALTH SCIENCES & PHARMACY 45
ST. LOUIS - SIUE used three separate double-digit runs and strong shooting to complete the Billiken Classic with a commanding 80-45 win Saturday over University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis.
Leading 17-10 with 13 minutes to play before halftime, the Cougars proceeded on a 15-0 run to open a 25-7 lead after a three-point play by Mike Adewunmi with 7:25 left in the half. SIUE closed the first half with a 13-0 run to lead 42-14 at the break.
The Cougars (1-2) opened the scoring in the second half to complete a second 15-0 scoring run. A Sydney Wilson three-pointer with 16:26 left completed a 10-0 run and pushed SIUE's lead to 37.
SIUE built as much as a 40-point lead (66-26) after a Desmond Polk free throw with 10:43 to play.
For the game, the Cougars connected on a season-high 52 percent (30-58) of their shots. SIUE knocked down 10 three-pointers, marking the second consecutive game it finished with double-digit three-point total.
All 12 available players appeared in the game and scored at least a point. Sydney Wilson paced the Cougars, scoring 15 points surpassing his season-high of 14 against Saint Louis on Wednesday. Adewunmi scored 14 points and Lamar Wright scored a career-best 10 points. Shamar Wright added eight points.
SIUE outrebounded UHSP 50-33. Adewunmi, Philip Pepple, Jr. and Iziah James each finished with seven rebounds. Courtney Carter finished with eight of SIUE's 17 assists.
The Cougars also blocked 11 shots, matching the school record set in 2006. Lamar Wright and Philip Pepple, Jr. each blocked three shots apiece.
R.J. Wright scored 15 points to lead UHSP (1-2) offensively. Will Feese added nine points on three three-pointers.
SIUE was the only team to play three games in the Billiken Classic. Saint Louis (2-0) and LSU (1-1) each played to games. Saturday's was USHP's only game in the multi-team event.