BELLEVUE, Neb. -- The Bellevue University men's basketball team won its seventh-straight game, finishing the regular season with an 89-64 victory over Dakota State University Friday night in North Star Athletic Association action at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
With the win, the Bruins improved to 23-7 on the season and 13-1 in the NSAA. BU will be the top seed in the NSAA Post-Season Tournament beginning next Tuesday. DSU dropped to 8-22 overall and 4-10 in league play
Lewis Hayes led five Bruins in double figures, finishing with 17 points along with five rebounds. Amenofis Mitchell added 15 points all on 3-pointers. Connor Dukes poured in 14 points and was 4-of-6 behind the arc. Isaiah Bates chipped in with 13 points and eight boards. Jaron Dickson finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and a game-high eight assists.
Gare Ewafada (21) and Josh McGreal (19) combined for 40 points to pace the Trojan offense.
The Bruins, who displayed an impressive array of dunks throughout the game, outshot DSU, 51.5 to 38.6 percent while nailing 14 3-pointers.
A layup by Niamey Harris capped a 7-0 BU run as the Bruins grabbed an early 17-9 lead in the first six minutes of the contest.
Mitchell's third triple of the first half gave the Bruins a 36-26 lead with 5:47 remaining in the period. Two-straight dunks by Bates gave BU a 40-28 advantage one minute later and Bates' third dunk made it 45-28 at the 2:35 mark. Dukes' dunk gave BU a 47-31 edge before the Bruins settled for a 50-36 halftime advantage.
Bates and Dukes led BU in the first half with 11 points each as BU outshot the Trojans 54.3 to 51.9 percent.
McGreal (17) and Ewefada (13) combined for 30 of DSU's 36 points in the opening half.
The Bruins expanded the lead to 21 points after a 3-point play by Hayes gave BU a 60-39 lead with 15:46 left in the game.
After a baseline jumper by Dickson gave BU a 70-50 lead, the Trojans used a 9-2 run to draw to within 13 points at 72-59 with 8:43 remaining. The Bruins countered with a six-point spurt and Bates' fourth dunk of the game gave BU an 80-61 advantage at the 7:11 mark.
A left-handed dunk by Harris made it 84-61 with four minutes remaining and the Trojans never got closer than 20 points the remainder of the contest as BU cruised to the 89-64 victory.
The Bruins earned the No. 1 seed for next week's NSAA Post-Season Tournament. Bellevue will host the No. 8 seed Presentation College at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 25 in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. The Semifinals and Championship Game will be played on Feb. 29-Mar. 1 in Watertown, S.D. at the Watertown Civic Arena.
