PORTSMOUTH, Ohio -- Fast starts have been no stranger to the Shawnee State men's basketball program this season, particularly at home.
Fred Lymas' group again got out to a blistering fast start Wednesday evening in a nonconference contest, as the men's basketball program at Shawnee State hit each of its first eight shots to begin the game and went 11-of-13 from the field over the first 9:03 of the contest, jumping out to a 29-13 advantage over the Alice Lloyd Eagles' men's basketball program and cruising home to a 76-63 victory at Waller Gymnasium in Portsmouth.
Shawnee State, who shot above 55 percent from the field for the second straight game, used its torrid start to ultimately finish with a 29-of-52 shooting mark (55.8 percent) from the field. That high percentage largely came behind the unselfish ball movement from the Bears, who accumulated 16 assists on its 29 buckets in the contest.
The Bears, who led throughout the contest's final 38:44, went on a massive 19-2 tilt over a span of 4:57 with
Jareon Mayo being the main beneficiary during the spurt -- giving Shawnee State a 19-5 lead with 14:15 left to play in the first half.
Mayo, who finished with a game-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field -- including a 3-of-5 mark from three-point range -- scored nine points, alone, during the massive run while going 3-of-3 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free throw line in the process.
Ahead 19-7 with 14:02 remaining in the first quarter,
Kiante Williams then went on his own scoring binge, helping Shawnee State increase its lead to the aforementioned 29-13 margin by scoring seven consecutive points over a span of 1:38 to keep the Bears in front.
Williams' 12 points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals, along with his 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 mark from the free throw line, carried Shawnee State for much of the remainder of the opening half, while
Jaiden Guice and
El Sieger each added in six points off of the bench as the duo combined to go 4-of-6 from the field and 3-of-5 from three point range as the Bears grew their advantage to a 48-29 halftime lead.
Alice Lloyd did cut the SSU deficit to a 56-47 margin with 12:32 to play in the game but got no closer as Shawnee State responded with a 12-2 run over the next 5:13 with Mayo scoring all 10 of his second-half points during the spurt to lift the Bears to a double-digit lead for good in the contest.
Along with Mayo's 19 points on the efficient numbers mentioned above, Williams posted his second consecutive double-double with a 16-point, 10-rebound, four-block, three-steal effort while going 6-of-9 from the field and 3-of-3 from the line.
Jason Steele joined Mayo and Williams in double-figures by posting 12 points, four rebounds and three assists while going 6-of-7 from the floor in 33 minutes of gametime, while
Rheyce DeBoard led Shawnee State with a team-high five assists.
Shawnee State (4-3) will turn its attention to its contests at 'The Show' in Kingsport, Tenn. -- where the Bears will play Union Commonwealth (Ky.) Saturday, Nov. 29 at 6 p.m. and No. 17 Georgetown (Ky.) Sunday, Nov. 30 at 2:30 p.m. at the
MeadowView Conference Resort & Convention Center.
For more information on the Shawnee State men's basketball program, visit Shawnee State men's basketball on Instagram atÂ
https://www.instagram.com/ssuhoops/, on X atÂ
https://x.com/ShawneeStateMBB, or atÂ
https://ssubears.com/sports/mens-basketball.