JUNCTION, Colo. – The St. Edward's men's basketball team moved the ball with precision and purpose, utilizing a balanced attack to torch the Colorado Christian Cougars 88-71 to split the Colorado road trip to open the season.
Four out of St. Edward's five starters scored in double figures, led by Jeff Gary's 22 points. The Hilltoppers assisted on 21 of their 31 made field goals with only eight turnovers. Carson Tuttle led the way with six assists, but it was a decentralized attack that led to five players posting at least three assists.
MASON HIX was the biggest recipient in the first half, setting the tone by hitting his first three 3-pointers and leading the team with 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting to push the Hilltoppers out to a 44-36 lead at the break.
The ball flowed early, often, and in a variety of ways. UCHE DIBIAMAKA generated the first points by drawing two defenders in the paint and sending a pass out to BLAKE NIELSEN who quickly found Hix for the 3-pointer. Hix scored again, coming off a set of staggered screens for a 3-pointer off a feed from Tuttle.
For St. Edward's third 3-pointer, the offense seamlessly blended one action into the next, moving from a pick and pop at the top of the key into a dribble handoff to get Dibiamaka the ball on the wing against a rotating defense. Dibiamaka attacked on the catch, drawing a defender to get the ball to Gary for the score.
Colorado Christian held its own early, taking a seven-point lead seven minutes into the half working through the inside-outside combination of Nic Zeil and DJ McDonald, who combined for 22 points before the break. McDonald 3-for-6 from deep in the first half, hitting his third 3-pointer off a feed from Jason Gallant with 7:24 remaining to give his team a 27-21 lead.
St. Edward's responded by reeling off 11 of the next 12 points. Uzoma Dibiamaka sparked the run with a 3-pointer off a feed from Hix. A few possessions later, UCHE DIBIAMAKA found Hix food a short turnaround jumper in the paint. The Hiltoppers took the lead on a steal by Hix, leading to a fastbreak Euro-step layup for the 28-27 lead.
The Hilltopper defense upped its pressure, disassembling the Colorado Christian offense into its individual components. After allowing eight assists in the first 12.5 minutes, the Hilltoppers only surrendered two assisted baskets and made field goals the rest of the half.
Gary got going late in the half, scoring nine points on eight shots, and Tuttle and UCHE DIBIAMAKA combined for 15 points and six assists while Uzo added five off the bench.
The ball continued to move in the second half and Gary was the Hilltoppers' greatest recipient, playing a perfect 16 minutes of offense after the break with 13 points on 4-for-4 shooting from the field, including 2-for-2 from deep, and 3-for-3 from the 3-point line with an assist and no turnovers.
After trading buckets in the second half, Uzo Dibiamaka drained a 3-pointer to give the Hilltoppers a 70-60 lead with 8:18 remaining. St. Edward's led by double digits the rest of the way, reaching its 17-point margin of victory on a 3-pointer by Tuttle with six seconds remaining.
Gary finished 7-for-12 from the field and 3-for-5 from the 3-point line with no turnovers. UCHE DIBIAMAKA and MASON HIX added 15 points each with Dibiamaka grabbing 10 rebounds. Hix contributed three steals and Dibiamaka three assists. Tuttle scored 11 points to go with his six assists and no turnovers. Uzo Dibiamaka, Sean Elkinton, and BENNETT MOHN combined for 18 points off the bench.
The Hilltoppers limited Colorado Christian to 42.1 percent shooting, forcing 12 turnovers, including seven steals, to score a 17-7 advantage in points off turnovers.
St. Edward's improves to 1-1 with the victory. The Hilltoppers will return home and host Arlington Baptist on Tuesday, followed by home games against the University of St. Francis (Ill.) on Thursday and Saturday.
