BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Despite shooting a season-low 33.3 percent from the field, the Bellevue University men's basketball team battled to a 54-46 victory over visiting Presentation College Saturday night in North Star Athletic Association action at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
Bellevue improved to 15-10 on the season with the win and 7-4 in the NSAA. Presentation dropped to 5-18 overall and 0-11 in league play.
Senior Paulo Araujo led the Bruins with 14 points and four rebounds. Senior Martis Johnson and Taylor Pomeroy chipped in with nine points apiece.
Senior Justin Motley pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds while adding four points, three assists and three blocked shots.
Maximo Guillermo recorded a double-double for the Saints, recording 12 points and 12 rebounds. Travez Nyx added 10 points and five boards.
Pomeroy scored the first six points of the game as the Bruins raced out to an early 9-2 lead in the opening five minutes of the contest.
The Saints responded by going on a 10-2 run highlighted by a pair of dunks from Guillermo to take a 12-11 lead with eight minutes left in the first half.
The two teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half, but a 3-pointer by Isaac Sumption gave the Saints a 24-21 halftime advantage.
The Bruins shot just 24.2 percent from the field in the opening half, including a 3-of-18 effort from beyond the arc.
Pomeroy led BU in the first half with nine points and two rebounds.
Sumption paced the Saints with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field while adding three rebounds.
Two-straight jumpers by Vinny Belcaster capped a 9-2 run to open the second half, giving the Bruins a 30-26 lead with 16:27 left in the contest.
Presentation countered with a 7-2 spurt to regain the lead at 33-32 at the 13:29 mark.
Two 3-pointers by Araujo sparked an 8-2 BU run giving the Bruins a 40-35 edge with 12 minutes remaining.
The Saints got as close as two points on three occasions, and a putback by Guillermo made it a one-point contest at 46-45 with just under six minutes left in the game.
Neither team scored again for nearly four minutes until a layup by Raydden Grobe gave BU a 48-45 margin with 2:16 remaining. A deep 3-pointer by Johnson extended the Bruin advantage to six points (51-45) at the 1:36 mark.
A free throw by Nyx snapped a five-minute scoring drought for the Saints, making it a five-point contest with 41 seconds remaining.
BU drained three free throws in the final 30 seconds to seal the 54-46 victory.
The Bruins will travel to Valley City, N.D., next Friday, Feb. 10, for a 7:30 p.m. matchup with Valley City State University.
