Box Score ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - The UALR men's basketball team (1-1) dropped a 77-64 decision to St. Bonaventure (1-1) on Sunday afternoon at the Reilly Center. SBU's Andrew Nicholson led all players with a 25-point, 11-rebound double-double, while Ogo Adegboye and Michael Davenport added 17 points apiece in the win.
UALR senior Alex Garcia-Mendoza recorded the fourth 20-point game of his career in the losing effort, going 5-of-10 from the field and 10-of-11 at the foul line on his way to a team-high 21 points. Junior Eric Kibi added 11 points off a 5-of-7 effort from the floor.
The Bonnies used a 22-6 run in the first half to break open a four-point game on their way to a 39-25 lead at the break. SBU shot 48.1 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes, led by Nicholson's 16 points off a 6-of-7 effort from the floor. The Trojans committed 12 turnovers in the first half, many of which were unforced, and the Bonnies parlayed those miscues into a 23-10 scoring edge in points off turnovers.
UALR trailed by four, 13-9, with 11:55 remaining in the half after a layup by Kibi, but the Bonnies embarked on a 22-6 run over the next 7:52 to build a 20-point lead. Nicholson scored eight points during the 22-6 run, the last of which came off a pair of free throws following a technical foul on the UALR bench, which put SBU ahead 35-15 with 4:30 left in the half.
The Trojans managed to outscore St. Bonaventure 10-2 over the final four minutes to make it a 39-25 contest at the half. Kibi and Garcia-Mendoza paced the Trojans with six points apiece over the first 20 minutes.
UALR was able to hold St. Bonaventure to a .409 shooting percentage in the second half, but the Trojans were never able to get any closer than 11 points, 75-64, in the final minute. The Bonnies shot 81.1 percent at the foul line in the win, including a 19-for-24 effort in the second half.
Nicholson was 8-of-13 from the field and 9-of-10 from the foul line en route to his game-high 25 points. Davenport followed up Nicholson's 11-rebound performance with a 17-point, seven-rebound effort to help SBU to a +3 margin on the glass (36-to-33).
The Trojans shot just 39.3 percent from the field in the game, and connected on just 3-of-17 attempts from three-point range (17.6 percent). UALR's bench outscored the Bonnies 19-to-9 in the loss, with seven points from senior Matt Mouzy and six points from junior Marlon Louzeiro.
UALR returns to action Wednesday night when it welcomes St. Gregory's to the Jack Stephens Center at 7 p.m.
