Box Score
The Bruins basketball team sent their seniors off with a win on Saturday night as the team edged Columbia International University 103-99 for their 11th straight win. The victory also marks the fourteenth win in the last fifteen games as the Bruins are 18-10 on the season. The team honored the five seniors on the squad this season as Matt DeHart, Cooper George, Robert Horn, Dustin Killough and Justin Matthews were recognized in a postgame ceremony.
"We had another game where everyone contributed," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "Our guys are buying into the team philosophy that if we all do our part good things are going to happen. We don't script out who is going to score points but these guys each did their part which has been key in this winning streak."
In the opening minutes, the Rams came out strong as they jumped out to a 13-4 lead. The Bruins responded with a 12-0 led by Nate Ellenwood as they stormed back to take the lead. As the half continued, the two teams went back and forth before being knotted at 27-27 with just seven minutes left to play in the half. Nate Ellenwood and Justin Matthews knocked down three straight threes for the Bruins as the team closed out the final minutes of the half strong to take 48-42 lead into the break.
As the second half began, the Bruins came out strong behind the play of their captain Dustin Killough. The senior knocked down a three and was fouled two other times from beyond the arc. His 15 points on the night made him the all-time leading scorer in program history.
The Bruins continued to widen their lead as the team worked the ball inside for Quez Fisher and Jayson Barnhart. The pair of bigs took care of business in the paint as the team built a 64-50 lead. With their backs against the wall, the Rams responded as they caught fire from the outside shooting nearly 60% from three-point range in the game. Still, the Bruins maintained the upper hand as the game was drawing to a close.
After Juraj Rovis made a layup, the Rams had climbed back to take a 90-88 lead with just over four minutes to play. The Rams continued to answer the Bruins baskets as they led 96-94. Nate Ellenwood found Jayson Barnhart on the next possession as the Bruins tied it 96-96. Then, Justin Matthews hit the biggest shot of the game as the senior swished a three-pointer with just over a minute to play. The Rams tried to answer back but free throws down the stretch from Nate Ellenwood and Quez Fisher iced a 103-99 win.
"Every game has been different in what causes us to win," Coach Uwarow said. "Sometimes it is rebounding and sometimes it is defense and sometimes it is outside threes. It wasn't pretty but I'll take an ugly win over a pretty loss."
Nate Ellenwood led the Bruins with 38 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists on the night. He was one of five players in double figures for the team as Jayson Barnhart finished with 21 points while Quez Fisher had a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Justin Matthews scored 10 and Dustin Killough had 15 in the win.
With the win, the Bruins end the regular season of play and will await word on final seeding for the NCCAA DII South Region Playoffs. The regional tournament will be played next weekend at Pensacola Christian College.
