BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Junior guard Nick Hilton scored a career-high 27 points to lead the 21st-ranked Bellevue University men's basketball team to a convincing 82-61 victory over Valley City State University Friday night in North Star Athletic Association action at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
The Bruins improved to 18-8 on the season and 10-3 in the NSAA. VCSU fell to 14-13 overall and 6-7 in the NSAA.
Hilton drained six 3-pointers in the win while adding five rebounds and three assists. Jalen Hall registered 15 points, two rebounds and a pair of assists. Jaffery Stillman contributed with six points and 10 rebounds.
Austin Dunbar (18), Jayden Ferguson (16) and Rashad Satahoo (15) scored 49 of the Vikings' 61 points.
The Bruins opened up a 19-7 lead in the first nine minutes of the game paced by five points apiece from Hilton and Jerred Cook. The Vikings countered with a 5-0 run over the next three minutes to cut the deficit to seven points with just over eight minutes before halftime.
The Vikings, who used only seven players in the first half, shot just 28.1 percent from the field as BU took a 34-21 lead into the intermission.
Hilton led BU in the first half with 12 points and four rebounds.
Sparked by three 3-pointers from Hilton, the Bruins used a 12-0 run to open up a 26-point advantage at 55-29 with 13:13 left in the contest.
VCSU used a 13-3 run to close the gap to 16 points (62-46) at the 8:34 mark. The Vikings, however, never got closer the remainder of the game as BU cruised to the 21-point victory.
The Bruins will host the University of Jamestown at 5 p.m. tomorrow (Feb. 11) at 5 p.m. in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
