(Peru, Neb.) – The Bobcat men's basketball team ended their 2017 portion of their season with a win over Dordt (Iowa) in the Mike Miller Classic in Mitchell, S.D.
 
The 'Cats defeated the Defenders 94-84 to finish 2017 with an 8-6 mark before they head back into Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) action in 2018. Dordt finished their first semester with a 9-9 mark.
 
This was the second win of the season for Peru State over Dordt as they earlier had topped the Defenders in overtime in the Northwestern (Iowa) Classic.

 
First Half Action
 
The Defenders took the early lead with a three-pointer at the 19:15 mark. Later, with 18:37 on the clock, Seth Snoddy (Daly City, Calif.) hit a lay-up on an assist from LJ Westbrook (Salem, Ore.). Terry Moore Jr. (Kansas City, Kan.) would then hit back-to-back buckets to put the Bobcats up 6-3.
 
Quantice Hunter (Chicago) would hit a bucket and then a pair of free throws to extend the Peru State lead to 10-3 with 15:42 remaining in the first 20 minutes.
 
Later, after a Marcus Nolan (Casper, Wyo.) lay-up at the 11:54 mark, Peru State had a 20-13 lead after the teams had basically traded buckets for the past four minutes.
 
The Bobcats held the lead until 8:19 on the clock when a Defender drained a trey to put Dordt up 27-26. Paulius Sakinis (Klaipeda, Lithuania) would then hit a pair of free throws to regain the lead for the 'Cats. Again, the teams would trade leads until Allias Roberts-Burnett (Joliet, Ill.) would drain a trey off an assist from Hunter to put Peru State up 35-32 with a little under six minutes left in the half.
 
The 'Cats would outscore the Defenders 11-8 from that point on to lead 46-40 at halftime.
 
Second Half Action
 
Marley Biyendolo (Melbourne, Australia) made a bucket to begin the second half to extend Peru State's lead to 48-40. After the Defenders hit a bucket, Westbrook drained a trey to put the 'Cats up by nine which was the largest lead to that point in the contest.

 
Dordt would pull back within four at 51-47 before Hunter hit a bucket at the 17:35 mark to make it 53-47. Biyendolo would complete an old-fashioned three-point play with the bucket coming off an assist from Westbrook and the Bobcats were back up by nine.
 
With 15:41 remaining in the game, Peru State had its first ten-point lead at 59-49 after Hunter hit a trey. That must have sparked the Defenders as they scored ten unanswered to tie it at 59-59 in less than two minutes. This forced a full timeout by the Bobcats.
 
Roberts-Burnett would break the tie with a pair of free throws and then Nolan made a layup and the 'Cats led 63-59 with 12:47 to go.
 
Later, Dordt would regain the lead at 68-67 at the 9:07 mark after making a pair of free throws. A trey by Nolan put the Bobcats back up, but the Defenders hit a three-pointer of their own to reclaim a 71-70 lead at the 8:10 mark.
 
The game remained tight through the next five minutes with the Defenders staying within three at 82-79 with just under three minutes to go. A trey by Roberts-Burnett off an assist from Westbrook extended the Bobcat lead to 85-79. But, Dordt would not go away. The Defenders later pulled back within four at 87-83 with 1:38 left on the clock.
 
Moore Jr. would score the final five points of the game as the Bobcats would eventually claim the ten-point win at 94-84.

 
Team Statistics
 
Both teams shot the ball well from the floor, but the 'Cats were extremely hot from the field. Peru State made 35 of 62 field goals for 56.5% which included making 6 of 14 from long range for 42.9%. At the free throw line, the Bobcats made 18 of 25 for 72%. Dordt made 27 of 60 field goals for 45% and hit 8 of 25 from behind the arc for 32%. At the charity stripe, the Defenders made 22 of 34 for 64.7%.
 
Peru State had a slight rebounding edge as they grabbed 33 boards compared to 29 for the Defenders. The 'Cats also dished out a few more assists as they finished with 15 compared to 11 for Dordt. The Bobcats had two fewer turnovers as they finished the contest with 13.
 
The Bobcats blocked three Defender shots and had nine steals while Dordt grabbed 11 steals.
 
Individual Statistics
 
Five Bobcats finished in double figures and were led by Moore Jr. with a game-high 21 points on 8 of 10 shooting. Hunter added 18 points while Westbrook finished with 14. Nolan had 13 while Roberts-Burnett contributed 12.
 
Westbrook led all rebounders with a game-high nine boards while Snoddy added five. Westbrook also had a game-high eight assists while Hunter dished out three.
 
Biyendolo, Sakinis, and Nolan were each credited with one blocked shot. Hunter led the team with a game-high six steals while Moore Jr. nabbed two.

 
Upcoming Contests
 
It will be all Heart action the rest of the year when Peru State resumes play on Wednesday, Jan. 3, when they travel to Olathe, Kan., to face MidAmerica Nazarene at approximately 7:30 p.m. The 19^th-ranked Pioneers are going to be mad heading into the 2018 part of the season as they have dropped three in a row and are now 8-5 overall and 1-2 in the Heart.
 
On Saturday, Jan. 6, the 'Cats will host Grand View (Iowa) at 4 p.m. The Vikings are 9-4 on the season and are 2-1 in the Heart North. This day will be recognizing Nebraska City Lourdes graduates Sakinis and Noah Vasa (Nebraska City). All Lourdes fans will be allowed in free. In addition, the athletic department will recognize several Lourdes groups for their outstanding performances.