Shelton leads BU over Saints, 90-77

Box Score
NSAA Standings

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- BJ Shelton led four Bruins in double figures with 21 points as the Bellevue University men's basketball team defeated Presentation College, 90-77, in North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) action Friday night at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. 

The Bruins improved to 8-7 overall with the win and 2-2 in the NSAA. Presentation fell to 5-6 on the season and 2-2 in league play. 

Shelton added five rebounds in the victory. Nick Hilton finished with 15 points, six assists, and four boards. Blake Wilder scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds. Jerred Cook was the fourth Bruin in double figures, registering 14 points. 

Aaron Samuels (22) and Donnell Minton (20) combined for 42 points to pace the Saint offense. 

Neither team could establish control early in the first half. After Minton tied the game at 27-27 with a 3-pointer at the 6:36 mark, the Bruins closed the half on a 19-10 run capped by a 3-pointer by Wilder at the buzzer, giving BU a 46-37 lead at the intermission. 

Wilder led BU in the opening half with 11 points and four rebounds. Bradley Branch (11), Minton (10) and Samuels (10) combined for 31 of the Saints' 37 first-half points. 

After Shelton made a quick layup to start the second half, giving BU an 11-point margin, PC went on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to four points at 48-44 at the 18:40 mark. 

The Bruins used a 7-0 run of their own to push the lead to 13 points (62-49) with just under 13 minutes left in the contest. The two teams played evenly over the next six minutes until a layup by Shelton gave BU its largest lead of the game at 17 points (67-50) at the 6:43 mark. 

The Saints battled back, trimming the deficit to 10 points at 77-67 following a layup by Minton with just over five minutes remaining.

An 18-foot jumper by Samuels cut the lead to single digits at 77-69 with four minutes left. The Bruins countered with an 8-1 BU run highlighted by a dunk from Shelton and a 3-pointer by Mike Cardenas extending the Bruin lead to 15 points at the two-minute mark. 

The Saints could not get closer than 11 points the remainder of the contest as BU secured the 90-77 victory, its second-straight NSAA win. 

The Bruins will host Waldorf University on Saturday, Dec. 17 at  5 p.m. in an NSAA matchup at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.