ST. LOUIS - Saint Louis snapped a three-game losing streak with a 73-35 romp past Grambling State in a non-conference men's basketball game at Savvis Center. Junior forward Izik Ohanon led all scorers with a career-high 21 points.
"We played well defensively for the entire game, and that's a level of defensive excellence that we need to maintain throughout the year," said Billikens head coach Brad Soderberg. "At the other end of the floor, we've needed to get Izik more minutes, and he got that tonight. He let the game come to him more rather than trying to force things."
The Billikens led 17-14 with 9:35 remaining in the first half before ripping off 16 unanswered points and finished the half on a 26-2 run. Senior forward Ross Varner helped break down the Tigers' zone defense with three treys to record all nine of his points in the first half.
After being shaky defensively after halftime in three consecutive losses, the Billikens came out of the lockerroom and smacked GSU with a 12-2 run to open the second half. Junior guard Reggie Bryant drilled two triples in that run. The Billikens pushed the lead to as many as 42 before with 12:17 remaining and substituted freely throughout the second half.
Saint Louis shot season-highs of 55.3 percent from the field and 64.3 percent from the arc. The Bills had 11 steals while forcing 21 GSU turnovers and converted those into 28 points. Bryant finished with 14 points, and senior guard Josh Fisher added 11. Bryant led the Bills with a career-high eight rebounds.
Ohanon enjoyed one of the best all-around games of his career shooting 63.6 percent (7-11) from the field, 75 percent (6-8) from the free throw line, grabbing five boards and adding two assists. "It's been a tough two months for me recovering from my sprained ankles," he said. "But I tried to be aggressive at the defensive end, and it carried over the offensive end."
Grambling (2-6) shot 32.6 percent from the field and 7.7 percent (1-13) from threeland. Senior forward Paul Haynes topped the Tigers with 13 points and seven rebounds.
Saint Louis (4-3) seeks its first road win of the season at SMS on Sat., Dec. 20. Tip-off at the Hammons Center in Springfield is 7 p.m.
