(Peru, Neb.) – It was pretty much a dominating performance from start to finish for the Peru State men's basketball team Monday night in the confines of the Al Wheeler Activity Center.
 
The Bobcats jumped out to a 10-0 lead over the visiting Baker (Kan.) Wildcats and never looked back.
 
It was a key contest for both teams as they are mired in the middle of the Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) standings at this point of the season.
 
The win improved Peru State's Heart mark to 9-6 which is 3.5 games behind league-leading William Penn (Iowa). Presently, the Bobcats are in a tie for fourth with MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) – their upcoming opponent. Overall, Peru State pulled back to .500 on the season at 10-10.
 
Baker fell to 10-10 on the year and are one game behind the Bobcats in conference play at 8-7 as Peru State swept the season series.

 
First Half Action
 
Nick Brannon (Las Vegas) made a pair of free throws to start the game with just 14 seconds gone off the clock. Kendrick Robinson (Chicago) followed with a trey off an assist from Devon Colley (Las Vegas) and then Colley hit a trey off an assist from Brannon. With 18:21 on the clock, Colley drained another three-pointer, this time off an assist from Robinson. With just 99 seconds gone off the scoreboard, the Bobcats led 10-0.
 
At the 14:02 mark, Robinson hit a bucket to make it 18-4, the largest lead in the game for Peru State at that time.
 
Peru State would continue to slowly build up its lead and with 5:36 remaining in the first 20 minutes, Brannon made a pair of free throws to push the lead to 19 at 34-15.
 
The Bobcats' largest lead would come with just 43 seconds remaining in the first half when Colley hit another three-pointer, this time off an assist from O'Nandi Brooks (Brooklyn, N.Y.). Peru State led 45-23 at that point.
 
Baker would hit a bucket right before the first half ended to trail by 20 at halftime at 45-25.
 
Second Half Action
 
The Wildcats scored first in the second half with a bucket with nearly two minutes gone off the clock.
 
Isaac Simpson (Papillion) hit a bucket in the paint off a fast break with the assist coming from Colley at the 16:42 mark. Noah Vasa (Nebraska City) followed with a trey off an assist from Robinson and the Bobcats again led by 22 at 50-28.
 
Later, with 11:41 on the clock, Deonte McReynolds (Chicago) gave Peru State a 26-point advantage with a three-pointer on an assist from Robinson.
 
Later, with 3:38 to go in the game, a bucket by Colley off a fast break put the Bobcats up by 28 – their largest lead to that point – at 73-45.
 
The Wildcats would score the next six points before the Bobcat bench scored the final seven points of the game. Ante Martinac (Zagreb, Croatia) hit a field goal off an assist from Drew Switzer (Casper, Wyo.) with 90 seconds remaining in the game. Wil McCoy (Lincoln) followed with a bucket off an assist from Cade Connell (Arnold) to put the score at 77-51.
 
Connell would then feed Martinac who hit a trey for the final scoring of the game as the Bobcats won 80-51.

BAKER GAME BOOK
 
Team Statistics
 

The Bobcats shot the ball well from the floor and free throw line. Peru State made 28 of 61 field goals for 45.9%. From long range, the Bobcats were even better hitting 13 of 28 for 46.4%. At the charity stripe, Peru State made 11 of 14 for 78.6%. Baker struggled from the floor hitting just 18 of 68 for 26.5% which included making just 3 of 27 from three-point range for 11.1%. At the free throw line, the Wildcats were 12 of 18 for 66.7%.
 
Peru State finished with a big advantage in the rebounding numbers as they grabbed 52 compared to 36 for the Wildcats. The Bobcats more than doubled up the Wildcats in assists finishing with 23 while Baker had ten.
 
The Wildcats finished the contest with eight turnovers while the Bobcats had 13. Both teams blocked three shots. Peru State grabbed two more steals than the Wildcats as they nabbed six.
 
Peru Individual Statistics
 
Three Bobcats finished in double digits in scoring while two others were just one point away from double figures. Robinson had a game-high 17 points while Colley added 14. Henry Tanksley (Lincoln) contributed 11 points. Vasa and Brannon each had nine points while Simpson finished with eight.
 
Robinson had a big night as he added 17 game-high rebounds to finish with another double-double. Brannon nabbed nine while Colley finished with six rebounds.
 
Colley dished out eight assists while Robinson contributed with six.
 
Vasa, Brannon, and Simpson were each credited with one block.
 
Colley led the team with three steals while Vasa, McReynolds, and Connell each were credited with one.
 
Upcoming Contests
 
Peru State has two huge contests yet this week which will either help clean-up some of the log jam in the Heart race or make it worse.
 
On Thursday, the Bobcats will face MidAmerica Nazarene (MNU) in Olathe, Kan., at 7:30 p.m. Technically, the two teams are tied for fourth in the Heart, but the Pioneers, who are receiving votes in the latest coaches' poll, have played two less conference games at this point due to the weather. MNU is 12-7 overall and are 8-5 in the Heart.
 
The Clarke Pride, also receiving votes in the most recent NAIA poll, will be Peru State's opponent on Saturday in Dubuque, Iowa, at 2 p.m. The Pride are presently 15-6 overall having won five in a row and are 11-4 in the Heart – 1.5 games behind the league leaders – William Penn (Iowa).
 
Before the Bobcats are at home again, Peru State will face NCAA Division I South Dakota on February 4.
 
Peru State's next home contest will be Saturday, February 8, when they host Evangel (Mo.) at 4 p.m. This is the College's National Alumni Association annual chili feed.