LACEY, Wash. – On a night where the Saints' men's basketball team honored eight seniors playing their final home games inside Marcus Pavilion, the senior class combined for 60 points in the 11th ranked Saints' 73-56 victory over Montana State Billings.
After a defensive first half where Montana State Billings held a 28-27 lead over SMU, the guards began to light up the scoreboard.
Luke Chavez,
EJ Boyce,
Chandler Redix, and
BJ Standley single handily fueled the Saints' offense in the second half, while
Jordan Kitchen grabbed 14 rebounds to control the glass and limit second chance opportunities for the Yellowjackets. The Saints' defense also showcased their elite abilities, slowing MSUB to only 36 percent from the field and 27 percent from beyond the arc.
In the first half, the Yellowjackets continued to hang around the Saints despite falling behind early. They continued to chip into the lead and eventually took over the lead right before half. Saint Martin's, outside of Redix's nine points, had little to no offense with the next leading scorer at four points. The 3-point game continued to be off as they finished the half 1-for-12 from beyond the arc.
Trailing by one, the Saints opened the second half on a 10-3 run and never looked back. Chavez led the way with 12 points in the second half, along with five rebounds as the Saints continued to pull away.
By four minute mark, the Saints had outscored the Yellowjackets by 20 in the second half, and now led by 19 points. Montana State Billings never found an answer for the guards and the Saints pulled away for the 73-56.
Chavez led the Saints with 16 points to go along with his eight rebounds, while Kitchen ended with eight points and 14 rebounds. Redix finished with 15 points, and Boyce added 12 points. Standley came off the bench for 11 points and three rebounds.
Saint Martin's went 29-for-67 (43.3 percent) from the field, 7-for-26 (26.9 percent) beyond the arc, and 8-for-11 (72.7 percent) at the line. SMU outrebounded MSUB 46 to 32 and collected six assists on eight turnovers with seven steals and three blocks.
The Saints hit the road for the final week of the regular season, starting with Northwest Nazarene on Thursday. Live stats and video will be available on smusaints.com.
