POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. -- The Bellevue University men's basketball team scored 25 of the final 31 first half points en route to an 85-58 non-conference win over Missouri Baptist University Monday night at Keeter Gymnasium in the McDonald's Cam Jam Classic hosted by College of the Ozarks.
Ninth-ranked Bellevue has now won seven of its last eight games and improved to 11-4 while Missouri Baptist fell to 9-7.
Richard Shepherd scored 19 points while James Parrott, this week's MCAC Player of the Week, and Austin Bowen each added 15 points. Bowen also pulled down 14 rebounds for his first career double-double. Ousseynou Diop was the fourth Bruin to score in double-figures with 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Bruins shot 50 percent from the field and held MBU to just 37.3 percent shooting.
After facing a five-point deficit, 23-18, the Bruins finished the final 7:29 of the opening stanza on a 25-6 run to a take a 43-29 lead at intermission. Parrott led BU with 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting while Diop and Shepherd each scored 11 points apiece.
The Bruins shot 48.7 percent from the field and held the Spartans to a 41.9 percent mark. BU also forced 10 MBU turnovers in the first half.
MBU scored the first six points in the second half, but never got any closer the rest of the game as the Bruins shot 51.5 percent in the second half and made six three-pointers to cruise to the 27-point win.
The Spartans were led by Dezmon Hickman's game-high 26 points and 10 rebounds.
The Bruins will conclude the McDonald's Cam Jam Classic tomorrow with a 1:00 p.m. game against Union College.
