Hot-shooting Warriors down BU, 85-73

Box Score

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Laurence Merritt scored 36 points and Midland University hit 11-of-22 3-pointers as the Warriors handed the Bellevue University men's basketball team an 85-73 loss in the final game of the Hampton Inn Bruin Classic Thursday night in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. 

With the loss, Bellevue fell to 9-7 on the season. Midland improved to 13-4 overall. 

The loss marked BU's second defeat of the season to MU as the Warriors downed Bellevue, 69-57, on Nov. 28 in Fremont. 

Justin Motley led four Bruins in double figures, registering a career-high 16 points along with seven rebounds and three blocks. Motley has now moved into second place on the Bruins' all-time charts with 72 career blocked shots.  

Eric Pierce recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, along with six assists and a pair of steals. 

Paulo Araujo added 12 points and two assists and Vinny Belcaster finished with 11 points, four rebounds, and three assists. 

Merritt went 13-of-20 from the field, including a 6-of-11 effort from behind the arc. Bo Sanquist collected 12 points and six boards and Ryan Larsen finished with 12 points and five rebounds. 

The Warriors hit seven of their first 12 shots and used an early 8-0 run to grab a 15-8 advantage with 13:24 remaining in the first half.  

Bellevue countered with eight-straight points capped by Motley's fourth basket of the game to take the lead at 16-15 midway through the opening period. 

Back-to-back 3-pointers by Larsen and Merritt completed a 12-2 MU run, giving the Warriors a 35-23 lead at the 4:21 mark. Another pair of 3's by Merritt and Colton Uhing made it a 17-point contest with two minutes left in the first period.

Larsen's back-to-back triples gave the Warriors a 19-point cushion at 49-30. 

The Bruins scored the final four points of the half to make it, 49-34, at the intermission. 

Led by Merritt's 24 first-half points, the Warriors went 11-of-17 from behind the arc. Larsen connected on 4-of-5 from long range, scoring 12 points in the opening 20 minutes of play. 

Motley paced the Bruins in the first half with 11 points and two rebounds. Belcaster and Vaj Rice chipped in with six points each. 

An 8-2 run to open the second half drew the Bruins to within single digits at 51-42 at the 17:17 mark. It remained a nine-point contest after a pair of free throws by Belcaster made it 59-50 with 12:35 remaining. 

The Warriors led by as many as 14 points over the next seven minutes until a 3-pointer by Araujo drew BU to within 10 points at 72-62 at the 5:42 mark.  

A triple by Belcaster made it a single-digit contest at 74-66 with just under four minutes left.  

It was still an eight-point game (78-70) following a pair of free throws by Pierce at the two-minute mark.  A 3-pointer by Araujo sliced the deficit to six (79-73) thirty seconds later. 

MU secured the win with buckets by Laurence and Jack Cooper and a pair of free throws by Laurence in the final minute, earning the 85-73 victory. 

The Bruins will head to Dickinson, N.D. on Friday, Jan. 7, for an 8:30 p.m. NSAA contest at Dickinson State University.