The Basics
Score: Benedictine 87, Evangel 49
Records: Evangel (7-8, 6-4), Benedictine (11-3, 8-2)
Location: Ashcroft Center

Box Score

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Benedictine connected on its first nine field-goal attempts of the game and built a 29-point first-half lead over the Evangel men's basketball team before cruising to an 87-49 Heart of America Athletic Conference victory Wednesday evening at the Ashcroft Center.

Led by Matt Austin's 10 points, the Ravens knocked down their first five tries from beyond the three-point arc and 10 of their first 11 overall shots from the floor en route to establishing a 29-10 lead just eight-and-a-half minutes into the contest.

Austin buried a pair of three-pointers in the game's first three minutes and recorded each of his game-high 14 points in the opening half to help set the tone for a Benedictine offense that shot 0.593 (32-of-54) for the game and connected on a blistering 54.2 percent (13-of-24) of its attempts from three-point range.
 
After hitting just five of its first 22 field-goal tries of the night, EU briefly trimmed the gap to 17 points before the Ravens went on a 15-3 run to extend their lead to 44-15 late in the half. Eight different Ravens broke into the scoring column in the half to help BC take a 46-20 advantage into intermission.

The Ravens continued their torrid shooting in the second stanza, hitting on 11 of their first 15 tries from the floor to stretch the margin to 45 points midway through the half. Nysir Scott matched Austin's first-half shooting performance by going 4-for-4 from the floor in the second half, including 10 points during a 15-0 scoring run.

EU would get no closer than 36 over the final 9:29, finishing just 16-of-62 (0.258) from the field and 3-of-17 (0.176) from beyond the arc.

Cade Coffman led the Crusaders with 12 points, while Max Bilbrey and Jace Coffie combined for 11 points and eight rebounds off the EU bench.

UP NEXT
The Crusaders will look to halt their four-game skid with a 4 p.m., contest against Central Methodist Saturday (Jan. 16) at Puckett Field House in Fayette, Mo.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EUAthletics, Twitter (@EUAthletics), or visit EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the new Evangel Crusaders GamedayApp through Google Play. 

—EvangelAthletics.com—