Nov. 2, 2010

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ST. LOUIS - Brian Conklin scored 17 points on 8-of-8 shooting to lead Saint Louis to a 73-53 exhibition win over Cardinal Stritch Tuesday night at Chaifetz Arena.

Kyle Cassity and Rob Loe tallied 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Billikens, whose 60-percent shooting effort (30-of-50) included 23-of-27 in 2-point shooting. Cassity was 5-of-6 from the field, while Loe's scoring total included a pair of 3-pointers. Dwayne Evans (3-of-3 FG) scored eight points, gathered a game-high seven rebounds and had a team-high three assists.

Brandon D'Amico scored a game-high 20 points for Cardinal Stritch, and NAIA institution located in Milwaukee. D'Amico was 6-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. Navjot Singh and Nick Ford registered game highs of four assists and four steals, respectively.

A short turnaround in the lane by Conklin and Dwayne Evans' driving layup gave the Billikens a 4-0 lead. The Wolves answered with an 8-2 run, featuring two treys by D'Amico, to surge in front 8-6. Cassity then took over on both ends of the floor, sandwiching a 3-pointer from the top of the key between two steals and layups to put SLU on top 13-8.

After the Bills gained a 15-9 advantage on Evans' layup on an up-and-under, D'Amico sank two free throws and Singh made a tough layup to narrow the gap to 15-13. Christian Salecich buried a 3-pointer to give SLU some breathing room, but Jeremy D'Amico drove for a layup to slice the Saint Louis lead to 18-15.

The Billikens scored on four of five possessions in a 9-3 run that resulted in a 27-18 edge. Paul Eckerle ignited the spurt with a 3-pointer, Conklin followed with a 10-footer and a layup, and Jordair Jett backed in for a layup.

The teams combined for six consecutive scoreless possessions before Cardinal Stritch's Pat Barron tallied a layup and two free throws to whittle SLU's margin to 27-22. The Bills outscored the Wolves 8-3 the rest of the half, however, to take a 35-25 cushion to the locker room. Cody Ellis drained a 3-pointer, and Conklin collected two consecutive buckets with assists from Mike McCall. Conklin completed a conventional 3-point play following the second basket to give SLU its first double-digit lead of the evening.

Barron made a reverse layup on Cardinal Stritch's initial second-half possession, but the Bills got a Loe jumper from the right elbow, an open layup from Conklin and Eckerle's 15-foot baseline jumper for a 41-27 advantage. A Brandon D'Amico trey and conventional 3-point play offset Cassity's 17-footer from the right wing, and the Wolves were back to within 10, 43-33.

Conklin responded with a 12-foot turnaround jumper, but Derek Woelffer netted two consecutive layups to knock the Billiken margin to single digits at 45-37. That's when the Bills started to take command, however, assembling a 14-0 run to build the lead to 59-37. Jett began the flurry with a 14-foot jumper, Cassity hit a driving layup and Loe provided a tip-in. Jett sank a short pull-up jumper on a fast break, and Loe banged home a 3-pointer. McCall finished the run with a steal and conventional 3-point play, and Cardinal Stritch pulled no closer than 16 points the rest of the way.

Saint Louis hosts NCAA Division II Nova Southeastern Saturday, Nov. 6. Game time at Chaifetz Arena is 7 p.m.