BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Paulo Araujo hit six 3-pointers and scored 21 points to guide the Bellevue University men's basketball team to a 71-58 victory over Iowa Wesleyan University Wednesday night in the Hampton Inn Bruin Classic at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
The victory avenged an 80-71 overtime loss at Iowa Wesleyan on Dec. 11. With the win, the Bruins improved to 9-6 on the season. IWU fell to 5-10 overall on the season.
Araujo went 7-of-13 from the field and was 6-of-10 from behind the arc. He also added six rebounds and six assists.
Justin Motley finished with nine points, nine rebounds, and a pair of blocks. Vinny Belcaster added nine points and five boards in the victory. Jerome Bynum and Vaj Rice chipped in with eight points apiece.
Carver Locke led IWU with 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Francis Okwuosah recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Marvin Bateman added 11 points and a pair of boards.
The Bruins hit just four of their first 11 shots as the Tigers built an early 14-9 advantage. After BU used a 5-0 run to knot the contest, IWU scored four-straight, only to see BU go on an 11-0 run to take a 25-18 lead with 4:17 left in the opening half.
The Tigers closed the half on a 10-4 run capped by a 3-pointer from Marvin Bateman as IWU closed the gap to one point at 29-28 at the intermission.
Araujo led the Bruins in the first half with nine points, three rebounds, and a pair of assists. Rice went 3-for-3 from the field, scoring six first-half points.
Locke paced the Tigers in the opening half with 12 points and five boards.
A 3-pointer by Araujo capped an 11-3 BU run to open the second half as the Bruins built a 40-31 advantage at the 15:49 mark.
Bynum drilled two consecutive 3-pointers to give BU a 13-point cushion at 57-44 with 8:26 left in the game.
Two dunks by Motley and consecutive 3-pointers by Araujo highlighted a 12-2 BU run as the Bruins expanded the lead to 21 points at 69-48 with five minutes remaining.
The Tigers scored the game's final seven points to make the final, 71-58.
The Bruins will conclude the tournament on Thursday (Dec. 30) when they take on Midland University at 7 p.m. in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. Midland defeated Mayville State, 82-65, propelled by Bo Sandquist's 37 points.
