BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Trailing most of the contest, the Bellevue University men's basketball team pulled out a dramatic 54-52 victory over Nebraska Christian College in non-conference action Saturday afternoon at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
Bellevue, who closed the game on a 14-2 run, improved to 11-6 on the season. The Sentinels fell to 9-5 overall.
Jemeil King led the Bruins with 16 points, three rebounds, and three assists. Niamey Harris added 11 points, five steals, and four boards.
Jordan Makanjuola was the lone Sentinel in double figures, finishing with 10 points along with four rebounds. Kyle Bohuslavsky finished with nine points, five rebounds, and three assists. Drue Aguilera contributed with eight points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
The Sentinels scored the first 10 points of the contest before the Bruins battled back with a 17-4 run to pull to within three points following a layup by King with 7:48 left before halftime. A 3-pointer by Jaron Dickson drew the Bruins to within two points (23-21) at the 3:54 mark. That was as close as BU could get in the opening half as NCC took a 29-24 lead at the intermission.
The Bruins shot just 30.8 percent from the field in the first half and were 2-of-13 from behind the arc.
King led BU in the opening 20 minutes with eight points and two assists. Bohuslavsky, Aguilera, and Makanjoula each scored six points for the Sentinels in the first half.
After the Sentinels pushed the advantage to double digits following a 3-pointer by Samaj Shepheard, giving NCC a 41-29 lead, the Bruins used an 8-4 run to pull to within six (43-37) with 11:25 remaining in the contest.
The Bruins held NCC scoreless for nearly five minutes during a 12-0 run as BU took its first lead of the game on a layup by Niamey Harris with 4:09 left, giving BU a 52-50 advantage.
After Uzi Felix tied the contest with a pair of free throws, neither team scored for over two minutes until Jaylen Wiltz made one-of-two free throws, giving BU a 53-52 lead with just over a minute remaining. Following a Sentinel turnover, King missed a 3-pointer giving NCC the possession with 34 seconds left in regulation.
The Sentinels turned the ball over on the ensuing play. Wiltz once again made 1-of-2 free throws, giving BU a two-point lead setting up one final possession for the Sentinels.
Felix was called for an offensive charge on a drive to the bucket with two seconds remaining, giving the Bruins the hard-fought 54-52 victory.
The Bruins will resume conference play on Friday, Jan. 10 when they travel to Dickinson, N.D. to take on Dickinson State University at 8:30 p.m. (central time).
