Jan. 2, 2000
SPRINGFIELD, MO. - Southwest Missouri State guard Kevin Ault drilled a pair of long-range threes to send the Bears past Saint Louis 71-62 this afternoon in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Hammons Center in Springfield.
"We can't turn the ball over in the second half like we did today and expect to win a road game," Billikens head coach Lorenzo Romar said. "We weren't as aggressive at either end of the floor as we were in our last two road games at Dayton and Kansas."
The Billikens committed 13 second-half turnovers and while rallying late in the game were unable to get a shot on four consecutive turnovers. The Billikens handed out only six assists while turning the ball over 18 times. The much taller Bills also weren't effective at the defensive end where they failed to block a shot and also got out-rebounded 32-31. SLU ranks last in Conference USA in defending the three, and SMS made the Bills pay by dropping in 7-of-16 shots from behind the arc.
The Bears capitalized on 37.9 percent first half shooting by Saint Louis and managed a 30-27 lead at halftime despite a Justin Tatum dunk at the horn. The Billikens looked sluggish and travel weary on the third leg of their four-game road swing. The Bills were hampered by the absence of guard Dave Fergerson, who managed only six minutes because of the flu.
The Billikens closed the gap to 33-32 as Justin Love drilled a three off a fast break, but the Bears answered with a 6-0 spurt on jumpers by Ron Bruton and William Fontleroy along with a pair of free throws by Charles Gaines. Love snapped the run with a pair of free throws, but Ault answered with the first of his deep threes, a 21- foot bomb from above the top of the free throw circle.
SMS maintained a safe 8-to-11 point margin for the next five minutes before its final burst to safely stow the game away. With the Bears leading 54-43 with 6:58 remaining, Ault buried a 23-foot three from the far sideline. SMU pumped the lead to 63-46 with 4:40 remaining.
Freshman point guard Marque Perry, who had been severely hampered lately by a sprained toe, tried to rally the Billikens with his 15 points. Perry's traditional three-point play with 2:59 to play brought SLU with 63-54, but Saint Louis immediately yielded a lay-up off a full-court heave to Fontleroy off Billiken full-court pressure.
"That's a smart, veteran team that went to the Sweet 16 last year, and their experience showed today," said Billiken swingman Troy Robertson. "They took care of the ball, made their free throws and played a smart game."
The Bears limited Billiken leading scorer Justin Love to only 11 points on just eight shots. At times, SMS threw a box-and-one against Love. "That didn't limit us offensively," Love said. "We still had plenty of good looks, but we got out-played today."
Bears forward Scott Brakebill tied Perry for game-high scoring honors with 15 points, while SMS guard Allen Phillips added 14, all in the first half. After missing two games with a bruised knee, Fontleroy returned off the bench to contribute 12 and Ault finished with 11.
The Bills' Maurice Jeffers matched his career high with 14 points as the native Arkansan's friends and family watched.
The Billikens complete their four-game road trip by returning to Conference USA action at Marquette on Wed., Jan. 5, at 7 p.m.
