ST. LOUIS – Saint Louis received a game-high 21 points from Javonte Perkins as the Billikens knocked off first-place St. Bonaventure, 70-59, on Saturday afternoon at Chaifetz Arena.
 
The Billikens improved to 8-3 overall and 1-2 in the Atlantic 10. St. Bonaventure fell to 9-2 and 7-2 in the league.
 
Perkins scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half. Overall, he went 6-of-15 from the field and matched his season high with four 3-pointers. He grabbed a season-high six rebounds and tied for team-high honors with four assists.
 
Demarius Jacobs contributed 11 points, thanks in part to three 3-pointers. Marten Linssen went 4-of-4 from the field en route to eight points. He was effective defensively as well and blocked two shots.
 
Jordan Goodwin (nine points), Gibson Jimerson (eight points) and Yuri Collins (seven points) also contributed to the Billikens' team effort on offense. In all, eight Billikens scored and five had multiple assists as SLU recorded an assist on 17 of its 23 baskets.
 
The Billikens' 11 3-pointers matched a season high.

Billikens beat the Bonnies 70-59 today in a big win @ChaifetzArena

Here are your @BommaritoAuto Fast Highlights from the win! pic.twitter.com/1fdzFLgk7D

— SLU Men's Basketball (@SaintLouisMBB) February 6, 2021

 
The Billikens came out of the gate clicking on all cylinders. They went up 13-2 at the start, forcing the Bonnies to call a timeout just five minutes in after a Collins triple.
 
SLU grew its lead 20-7 before St. Bonaventure slowly chipped away at the deficit. An 8-0 Bonnies run pulled them to within three points with five minutes remaining in the opening half. The Billikens took a five-point lead into halftime, 36-31.
 
A quick 6-0 spurt by St. Bonaventure to start the second half gave the Bonnies their first – and only – lead of the game at 37-36 with 17:11 remaining.
 
It was a short-lived lead, however, as Collins again hit a clutch 3-pointer to put the Billikens back on top. The Bonnies would tie it up a short time later but were never able to regain the lead the rest of the way. A Jacobs 3-pointer at the 14:32 mark gave the Billikens a lead they would not relinquish.
 
SLU put together an opportune 9-0 run with less than 10 minutes remaining to put the game out of reach. Perkins had seven points in that span. The Billikens hit their free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
 
The Billikens return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 10, when they host Rhode Island at Chaifetz Arena. Game time on CBS Sports Network is slated for 8 p.m. (CT).