The Bemidji State University men’s basketball team posted a 95-60 season-opening victory against Mayville State University Wednesday at BSU Gymnasium. The Beavers got production from their starters and bench, guided by a game-high 23 points from junior transfer Brock Lutes (G, Portland, Ore.).

Lutes shot 9-for-12 (75%) from the field, which included a 4-for-7 (57.1%) performance from beyond the arc and added three rebounds and three steals. He led the team to a 54.0 percent shooting performance from the field and a 44.4 percentage from beyond the arc.

The Beavers didn’t look like a team that started fall practice with six returners and 10 newcomers – seven of which were true freshmen – and shared the ball for 23 assists, the most by a BSU team since Jan. 2, 2008 when that team recorded 23 versus Dickinson State University. Bemidji State recorded 16 steals and turned that into 38 points off turnovers. The last time a BSU team totaled 16 or more steals was Dec. 11, 2002 when that squad recorded a program record 25 steals against College of St. Scholastica. The Beavers brought down 13 offensive rebounds and used them to gain a 12-1 advantage in second chance points.

DJ Hervy (G, Chicago, Ill.), another junior college transfer, posted 17 points, four rebounds and three assists. Senior Zach Noreen (F, Avon, Minn.) also totaled a solid stat line with 14 points, six rebounds, a career-high four steals and three assists. Junior transfer Devin Bey (G, Kingstree, S.C.) provided a spark off the bench and added 15 points, a team-best eight assists, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals in 19 minutes of play.

Both teams started the game trying to find a rhythm, as the scoreboard read 9-7 in favor of BSU five minutes into the contest. A Bey lay-up with 14:14 to play in the first frame started the motor for the Beavers, as the squad ripped off a 13-2 run to open a 15-point advantage at 24-9 with 10:15 to go in the opening half. Four different players scored during the run.

Mayville State was able to knock the disadvantage down to 10 with 7:47 left, but a Lutes 3-pointer started another streak for the Beavers. This time it was 16-3 run during four minutes of play to hand the home team a 47-21 lead with less than four minutes remaining until halftime. Five different players scored during the surge, which was started and ended by a Lutes dagger from downtown. He had three during the stretch.

BSU pushed the lead as high as 29 before settling at 28 at the halftime buzzer, 55-27. Lutes posted 19 of his 23 points in the first frame, as the team shot 66.7 percent from the field and went 8-for-13 (61.5%) from beyond the arc.

The lead touched 30 for the first time 14 ticks into the second frame on a layup by Noreen. The Comets went to a zone defense in the second to slow the game down, but the Beaver lead never dipped below 23 and rose to a game-high 37 before closing at a 35-point victory.

Takeaways

• BSU is 2-0 in season openers under head coach Mike Boschee.

• The meeting between the Beavers and the Comets was the first since 2001. BSU improves to 47-35 all-time against Mayville State.

• Last season, BSU averaged 7.8 3-pointers per gam to sit third in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Beavers knocked down 10 or more shot from downtown on nine occasions in 2012-13.

Next Up

Bemidji State has six days before it continues its four-game nonconference homestand. The Beavers host Finlandia University Nov. 19 at 8 p.m.