Photo Gallery 
ST. LOUIS - Saint Louis led by as many as 14 points in the second half, but had to hold off a late rally by Belmont to earn a 75-67 nonconference victory at Chaifetz Arena Wednesday evening. The Billikens (7-3) held an 18-13 edge on the offensive glass, and out-shot the Bruins (7-3) 46.2 percent to 36.7 percent in the second half.
Willie Reed added 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. Brian Conklin also narrowly missed a double-double with 13 points and nine boards. Mick Hedgepeth paced the Bruins with 13 points and six rebounds, while Kerron Johnson chipped in 11 points, five caroms and four assists. The teams were evenly matched as the Billikens shot 41.4 percent from the field, while the Bruins hit 41.5 percent of their shots.
Femi John hit pull up jumper from the right side and Justin Jordan knocked down a shot on an offensive rebound to put SLU up 10-4 with 14:07 left in the opening half.
After Belmont's Jordan Campbell tossed in a 3-pointer, Reed's jumper in the lane at 13:18 gave the Billikens their largest lead yet at 12-7. Hedgepeth single-handedly kept the Bruins in the game, scoring seven points over the next two minutes to knot the score at 14-14 with 11:23 to go in the half.
The Bills immediately regained the lead when Mitchell drained a 3-pointer from the left side of the key at 11:09. Conklin recorded a pair of free throws and tallied in the lane before Mitchell scored on an inbounds play and John completed a three-point play at 7:21 to extend Saint Louis' lead to 26-19.
Belmont held SLU without a field goal for almost seven minutes as it closed to within 30-28 with 1:49 to go. Kyle Cassity nailed a 3-pointer with 32 seconds left to end the drought. Keaton Belcher hit a runner from the left side with one second remaining, but the Bills went into the break with a 33-30 edge. Belmont shot 47.8 percent in the first half, while holding SLU to a 37.5 percent clip. Hedgepeth led all scorers with 11 points, while Mitchell added nine to pace Saint Louis.
Two minutes after intermission, Belmont forced a tie for the third time in the contest when Belcher knocked in a 3-pointer from the top of the key to make it 35-35. Mitchell and Conklin responded with back-to-back baskets to put the Billikens back on top. Belcher's layup at 16:43 narrowed the gap to 39-37, but Mitchell posted the next five points to extend the margin to seven points.
Saint Louis held the Bruins scoreless from the field for the next five minutes. Reed scored the Billikens' 7:51 next seven points to put his team up 51-42 with 12:52 to go, while Belmont managed just six free throws during the stretch. The Bruins endured another five-minute drought after Johnson knocked down a shot from the left elbow that made it 53-44 with 11:37 remaining. SLU earned its largest lead of the game during that period as Mitchell's two charity tosses at 7:51 put the Bills up 59-45.
The Bruins chipped away at SLU's lead late in the game. Reed threw down a dunk with 1:07 left to keep SLU on top 67-57. However, Belmont outscored the Billikens 8-2 over the next 38 seconds to draw within 69-65. Saint Louis nailed six free throws in the final 27.6 seconds to secure the victory.
