ST. CHARLES — Southern Nazarene passed its first test of the year Saturday night with a 79-71 win over No. 14 Lindenwood (Mo.) in the final game of the Texas Roadhouse Classic.
The second-ranked Crimson Storm (2-0) got a game-high 22 points from #C.J. Henry# who shot 50 percent from 3-point range, going 5-for-10. The sophomore went 7-for-15 from the floor and also had a game-high eight rebounds.
Xavier Alexander scored 15 points with nearly half coming from the charity stripe as he hit seven of his 10 free-throw attempts. #A.J. Thomas and Jon West each chipped in with 10 points while West grabbed seven rebounds and dished out a team-high three assists. Milos Milosevic# also pulled down seven boards on the night.
The difference came in the Storm's depth and perimeter defense. SNU got 26 points off the bench while the Lions' reserves scored just 10. The Crimson Storm also held LU to just 5-for-18 shooting from downtown while SNU hit 42.9 percent (9-21) from 3-point range.
Two big runs, one late in the first half and one midway through the second, helped build a cushion that the Crimson Storm would need late in the game.
The first run was sparked by a Kyle Boen layup with 5:20 left in the first half. SNU led 24-21 when Boen picked the ball away from Richard Rose and Boen raced to the other end to put the Storm up 26-21. The bucket was the first in an 11-1 run as SNU took its biggest lead of the half at 35-22 and carried a 36-26 lead into the half.
The Lions cut it to 39-30 early in the second, but SNU stretched the lead back out to 49-34 with 14:17 left to play. After an LU basket made it 49-36, Jeremy Lightfoot got the second big run of the night going with a layup. Henry capped the 17-9 run with a 3-pointer as the Storm took their biggest lead of the night at 66-45 with 8:09 remaining.
SNU led 68-49 with 6:40 left, when the home team started to pick up steam.
The Lions cut their deficit to single digits with a 10-0 run to make it a 68-59 game with 3:42 left. SNU took it back to a 10-point lead at 71-61, but LU kept chipping away and got within five at 76-71 with 12 seconds left, but that was as close as the Lions came.
The Crimson Storm will now head back home and will play in the Sawyer Center for the first time this season when they host Avila (Mo.) for homecoming.
