The BJU Bruins earned their third consecutive victory on Tuesday night, defeating the Warren Wilson College Owls 105-83. With the win, the Bruins improve to 5-5 on the season. Nate Ellenwood nearly posted a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists in the win.
"I was really happy with how we played tonight and we got some big sparks off the bench for us tonight which really helped us," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "Some of the guys that had been carrying us this season struggled a bit tonight but I'm glad we've built enough bench strength and those guys came in and made a difference for us."
After the Owls dropped the first bucket, the Bruins responded with 10 unanswered points to take a commanding 10-2 lead. The Owls, however, refused to back down and sparked a 13-7 run of their own, narrowing the margin to 17-15.
Due to the inside presence of Jayson Barnhart and the perimeter shooting of Nate Ellenwood, the Bruins maintained the lead and increased it to 27-22. Then, Chapman Harwood scored 7 straight points, including two and-one layups. Harwood's efforts set off an offensive frenzy by the Bruins. Daniel Fuller sunk two threes during the final minutes of the first half and Zachary Orr contributed two late layups to give the Bruins a 49-35 lead at halftime.
To start the second half, Zachary Orr started right where he left off, scoring four quick points to increase the Bruin lead 55-41. Others such as Jayson Barnhart and Jon Allen joined the scoring barrage and helped the Bruins sustain a 12-0 run early in the second half (67-43). Despite a valiant effort from the Owls to keep the game within reach, Jayson Barnhart led the charge to put them away; the Bruins led 74-47 midway through the second half.
Yet, the Owls continued to fight, using their strong inside presence and post-men to chisel into the lead to 76-59. Just as the wheels seemed to be falling off for the Bruins, Kendall Norrington racked up seven consecutive points, including two and-one plays, to broaden the gap 83-61.
The Owls immediately called for a timeout, which proved to be helpful for their offense. They cut the Bruin lead to 13 (93-80) with a 19-10 run. On the other side, the Bruins were determined to dash any hopes of a comeback. Through great ball distribution and solid team defense, Jayson Barnhart, Nate Ellenwood, and Chapman Harwood provided late offensive firepower to put the game out of reach. When the buzzer sounded, the final score gave the Bruins another win 105-83.
"We did a lot of good things tonight," Coach Uwarow said. "Tonight's win puts us back at .500 and we have a chance to be above that going in our next game on Friday night."
Daniel Fuller had a great shooting night for the team as he shot 83% from behind the arc. Cam McKennedy displayed a strong defensive position with 4 steals. As a team, the Bruins shot a remarkable 61% from the field, tallied 24 assists, and snagged 13 steals.
Following a great team win, the Bruins will host Carolina Christian College on Friday in their final home game of the first semester of play.
