SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- With the luxury of starting off the season with seven consecutive home contests, the Golden Eagles (5-0) received double-digit performances from five players and pulled down a season-high 21 offensive rebounds in a 109-68 dismantling of Southwestern Adventist (Texas) tonight inside Bill George Arena.
For the first time since the Sooner Athletic Conference tournament first round against Northwood (Texas) last season, John Brown eclipsed the century mark, powered by a game-high 20 points from senior Max Hopfgartner and another 16 points from junior DJ Feitl. Hopfgartner ended the game 9-of-12 from the floor and added seven rebounds while Feitl, who has poured in double digits in all five games, went 4-of-9 from behind the arc and also added seven boards. Senior Samson Olayemi led all players with eight helpers and finished with four points and two caroms secured.
The John Brown bench nearly out-scored the visitors by themselves as the reserves posted an astounding 62 points in the game, led by 12 points from sophomore Nate Anderson. Anderson shot an efficient 5-of-6 from the floor and chipped in seven rebounds. Also eclipsing double digits was junior Ronalds Elksnis and sophomore Kileab Ammons, each of which added 10 points. All nine bench players scored points in the lopsided victory.
“We finally pieced together a 40-minute performance,†said head coach Jason Beschta, who runs his record to a perfect 5-0 behind the Golden Eagle bench. “Were really excited that we didnt let up tonight. We wanted to minimize their second chances and we limited them to just six offensive rebounds, which is a great thing, and we got a bunch of our chances missed back because of hard work. Were very pleased with that part of our game tonight.
“Were consistently encouraging guys to be who they are, to play their role. Were still learning those roles. We only had seven turnovers and put up 26 assists. Thats who we have to be. Every chance we have, practice and games, is an opportunity for us to get better. This is going to be a brutal stretch for us coming up. Were going to see some great, ranked teams in hostile atmospheres. Hopefully, this is preparing us well for our conference slate of games.â€
The Golden Eagles will return to action on Saturday (Nov. 15) at Bill George Arena against No. 23 Philander Smith (Ark.). Last season, the two squads played to a 106-105 overtime thriller, won late by JBU. Then, on the following Wednesday (Nov. 19), John Brown will welcome No. 4 Benedictine (Kan.) to Siloam Springs, before traveling away from Bill George Arena for the first time in the 2014-15 season to face Avila (Mo.) a strong opponent in Kansas City on Saturday (Nov. 22).
In tonights victory, the hosts turned the ball over just seven times, a season low, and tied a season high with 26 assists. JBUs 56 total rebounds also set a season high as did the Golden Eagle shooting effort, a 42-of-81 mark (51.9 percent). Both field goals made and shots attempted proved to be a season best.
The Knights (3-2) were led by JaColby Hardin-Crawfords 19 points on 8-of-21 shooting from the field. Kevin Squarzon also posted 17 points while Tyler Wooldridge added 16 in the loss. Three Knights pulled down a team-leading five boards.
