Box Score Kearney, Neb. – The Bellevue University Bruins shot 53 percent from the field and had a plus seven rebounding margin to defeat Nebraska Kearney, 80-67, Wednesday night in Bellevue.
 
Ranked ninth in NAIA Division II, BU improves to 9-2 and beats the Lopers (4-2) for a second straight season.
 
During a four-game winning streak, UNK's defense was stellar, holding teams to 38% field goal shooting and 65.7 points per game. That wasn't the case tonight as Bellevue erased an early nine-point deficit on the strength of strong shooting and board work.
 
The Bruins also played some good defense, holding Kearney to a season-low 37.5% from the field. UNK had shot over 50% from the floor in four of its first five games.
 
"I've got to tip my hat to Bellevue. They played a great game. They were so much more intense than we were," said UNK co-head coach Tom Kropp. "The entire night, they wanted worse than we did, they hustled harder than we did."
 
Senior guard Thomas Hammock (5-9, 160 lbs.) went 4 of 5 from behind the arc in the first half to help the Bruins build a 43-38 lead. That advantage only grew as BU scored nine of the first 11 points in the second half.
 
Down by as many as 18 points, UNK got a three from Pierce freshman Lane Rohrich and a bucket from York freshman Ty Danielson to make 66-55 with just over seven minutes remaining. However, the Bruins responded with a 14-5 spurt that featured scoring from three different players.
 
Hammock, one of 14 out-of-state players on a 15-person roster, finished with 15 points on 5 of 8 three point shooting. Next, senior wing Alex Worthen-Harris (6-6, 198 lbs.) had team-highs in points (18) and rebounds (nine) with reserves Percy Lemle (17) and Pogos Trunyan (10) also reaching double figures.
 
Lemle, a 6-3 senior guard, added seven assists and three offensive rebounds in 27 minutes. Bellevue finished with a 36-29 rebounding margin (22-12 in the 1st half) and was a solid 9 of 18 from down town. They went 10 of 23 from behind the arc in last year's 73-55 win over Kearney.
 
For UNK, Rohrich had a season-best 12 points on the strength of two threes and 6 of 7 free throw shooting with Ravenna Connor Beranek sinking all eight free throws he attempted to tally a team-best 15. Off the pine, Iowa freshman Trey Lansman had 13 points and three boards. 
 
The Lopers are at South Dakota Mines on Saturday afternoon.