BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Jelani Johnson and Richard Shepherd combined for 44 points to lead the Bellevue University men's basketball team to a 100-70 win over York College in Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference action Tuesday night at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
Seventh-ranked Bellevue has now won six straight games and improved to 13-4 overall and 1-0 in the MCAC while York fell to 7-10 and 0-1 in league play.
Johnson finished with 23 points on 11-of-16 shooting, while adding eight rebounds and six assists. Shepherd recorded 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including 3-of-4 from behind the arc.
Ousseynou Diop registered his team-leading fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Jeremy Arrington and Derrick Davis each collected 11 points as five Bruins finished in double figures.
The Panthers were led by Marcus Johnson's 22 points and four assists.
Bellevue hit its first three 3-point attempts to grab an early 9-4 lead. The Bruins extended the lead to 25-8 after Shepherd's third 3-pointer of the game with 13 minutes remaining in the first period.
York used a 13-4 run to cut the lead to eight points at 29-21 following a 3-pointer by Marcus Johnson at 9:32.
BU closed the half on a 24-12 spurt to grab a 53-33 halftime advantage.
Shepherd led the Bruins in the opening half with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. York was paced by Johnson's 18 first-half points.
Bellevue shot 57.5 percent in the first period, include 55.6 percent from 3-point range.
The two teams traded baskets for the first seven minutes of the second half before a dunk by James Parrott sparked an 8-0 Bruin run that gave BU a 75-46 lead with 11:30 remaining in the contest.
York never got closer than 24 points the remainder of the contest as the Bruins notched their second-straight 100-point game.
Bellevue outrebounded the Panthers 54-29 while holding York to 42.2 percent shooting.
The Bruins will continue their three-game homestand on Friday, Jan. 13 with a 7:30 p.m. tip-off against College of the Ozarks.
