The Blackburn Men's Basketball Team won their St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup against the visiting Principia College Panthers on Saturday afternoon. The game was played at Blackburn College, and the Beavers won by a score of 74-60.
Karson Hayes led the Beavers offensively with a dominant performance, scoring 26 total points. He was eight for 15 on field goals, and seven for eight on free throws. Hayes also tallied one assist. Javon Stovall followed behind Hayes, tallying eleven points. Nigel Ferrel finished with ten of his own. Chanz Aldridge returned after being out with an injury, and tallied up nine points with five assists. Multiple Beavers scored in order to keep a steady lead on Principia.
Defensively, the Beavers were led by Bryson Kirby, who had seven. Christian Wagner and David Lopez each had six rebounds, and Javon Stovall had three. Wagner tied with Chanz Aldridge to lead the team in steals with three. The strong defensive effort by the Beavers held Principia to minimal scoring opportunities, and allowed them to extend their lead late in the game to secure the win.
Principia was led offensively by TreVaughn Goodman, who had 18 points. He was six for twelve on field goals, and six for seven on free throws. Payton Sellers followed right behind Goodman, finishing with 17 points. He was seven for 15 on field goals, and 3 for seven on 3-pointers. Kevin Wingert finished with ten points for Principia. Though the Panthers had a smooth running offense, the Beavers were able to keep them from taking many wide shots, minimizng their points.
TreVaughn Goodman also led Principia defensively, with ten rebounds, a block, and four steals. Payton Sellers was also a defensive key for Principia, as he had two blocks and four rebounds. Clark Davidson had six rebounds for Principia, and a steal. Though Principia made a strong defensive effort early in the second half to attempt to diminish Blackburn's lead, the Beavers were able to push past Principia's defense to secure the win.
With this game, Blackburn now moves to an overall record of 8-11, and 7-5 in the SLIAC. Their next matchup will take place on Wednesday, February 5th. Blackburn will travel to Iowa to take on conference rival Iowa Wesleyan. The game will start at 7:30 p.m.