LAWRENCE, Kan. - Junior Pogos Trunyan (Sacramento, Calif.) canned seven three-pointers on his way to a career-high 21 points to lead the Bellevue University basketball team to a 83-72 Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference victory over Haskell Indian Nations University on Saturday evening.
The win was the sixth in a row for Bellevue, who improved to 20-3 (6-1 MCAC) while Haskell falls to 5-18 (3-4 MCAC) on the year.
Trunyan was joined in double figures by junior Taylor Young (Hawthorne, Calif.) and senior Percy Lemle (Carson, Calif.) with 21 and 13 points, respectively. Young hit 10-of-13 free throws and also contributed a game-high seven assists on the offensive end while Lemle's eight rebounds were a team-high.
Seniors Dimitri Chonis (Tucson, Ariz.) and Alex Worthen-Harris (Phoenix, Ariz.) each poured in nine points and hauled down four rebounds during the game.
Bellevue hit 10 three-pointers – on 23 attempts – and shot 43.5 percent from beyond the arc while also connecting on 77.8 percent (21-27) of their free throws. The Bruins overcame 17 turnovers by limiting the Indians to just 15 points on those turnovers. Bellevue gained a 39-38 rebound advantage and limited Haskell to 35.3 percent shooting from the field including 18.8 percent from three (3-16).
The Bruins built a nine-point lead with under a minute to play before halftime on a layup by junior Ian Randolph (Mt. Vernon, Ill.) with 51 seconds, giving BU a 42-33 edge headed into the intermission.
Bellevue used an 8-3 run out of the gate to start the second half, led by four points from Chonis to build their lead up to 14 points. Bellevue stretched their lead to 21 points at the 9:18 mark on a pair of free throws by Young. The Bruins hung on from there despite being out-scored 23-13 over the final 8:26 of the contest.
Randy July and Stand Lovato paced Haskell with 15 points apiece while Wilber Everett joined the duo in double figures with a double-double, compiling 13 points of his own to go with a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Bruins return to action on Friday, Feb. 6 when they host MCAC foe Oklahoma Wesleyan University at 7:30 p.m.
