(Peru, Neb.) – It was a huge Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) match-up in Atchison, Kan., Wednesday night as the winner would have sole possession of third place in the conference.
 
After trailing for the first ten minutes, the Peru State men's basketball team took the lead at the 9:37 mark in the first 20 minutes and never trailed after that point.
 
The Bobcats went on to top the home-standing Benedictine Ravens 73-55 to improve to 14-7 in the Heart and 15-12 on the season. Peru State moved one full game of the Ravens in conference play as Benedictine is now 13-8 in the Heart and 15-12 on the season.
 
Peru State mathematically still has a shot at the conference title with three games remaining in the regular season. More realistically, the Bobcats could still gain either second place or a tie for second place by winning their remaining contests.
 
First Half Action
 
The Ravens scored the first six points of the contest before the Bobcats could go untracked. Nick Brannon (Las Vegas) hit a bucket in the paint and was fouled on the play at the 15:56 mark. Brannon did not convert the free throw as the 'Cats trailed 6-2 at that point.

 
Benedictine would stretch its lead to eight at 12-4 with 14:22 left in the first half. Devon Colley (Las Vegas) drained a trey to cut the deficit to five. Following a Raven bucket, Colley made one of two free throws to make it 14-9. That was followed by a pair of free throws by O'Nandi Brooks (Brooklyn, N.Y.). Colley came back with another three-pointer to tie the game at 14 at the 12-minute mark.
 
Henry Tanksley (Lincoln) put Peru State in the lead for the first time, but Benedictine would tie it up at 16. With 9:37 left in the first half, a field goal by Colley gave the 'Cats the lead for good, even though the Ravens kept it close for most of the rest of the half.
 
Brannon followed with a bucket on an assist from Colley. Later, Brooks made one of two free throws which was followed by a Tanksley bucket. With 6:27 left in the first 20 minutes, Peru State had its largest lead to that point at 23-16.
 
The Ravens would get back within two at 25-23 at the 4:20 mark. Later, with 2:43 to go in the half, Noah Vasa (Nebraska City) drained a trey off an assist from Colley to put the Bobcats up by nine at 34-25. Both teams missed opportunities to score in the final two minutes plus, but Benedictine did get a bucket to put the halftime score at 34-27.
 
Second Half Action
 
Tanksley started the second half with a pair of free throws with 76 seconds gone in the second half.
 
The teams would trade buckets for the next five minutes with Benedictine pulling within five at 42-37 with 13:32 left in the contest.
 
Colley would complete an old-fashioned three-point play and then Tanksley hit another pair of free throws to give Peru State its first ten-point lead at 47-37 with 12:42 left in the game.

 
After the Ravens cut the game to eight, Brannon and Deonte McReynolds would each hit a trey and the Bobcats again had its largest lead. This time the 'Cats were up 55-41 with 8:33 to go.
 
Benedictine still had some fight and cut the deficit in half with just under seven minutes to go as they trailed 56-49. Brannon would make a pair of free throws which was followed by a Tanksley bucket. Brannon then had his opportunity to complete a three-point play which he did and the 'Cats were again back up by 14 at 63-49 with 4:23 remaining.
 
The Ravens would never get back within single digits as the 'Cats went on for the 73-55 win.

BENEDICTINE GAME BOOK
 
Team Statistics
 
The Bobcats out-shot the Ravens in every category Wednesday night. Peru State connected on 22 of 47 field goals for 46.8% which included hitting 7 of 20 from long range for 35%. At the free throw line, the 'Cats made 22 of 30 for 73.3%. Benedictine went 20 of 58 from the floor for 34.5% while struggling from behind the arc as they only made 3 of 23 for 13%. At the charity stripe, the Ravens made 12 of 17 tries for 70.6%.
 
Peru State had a slight rebounding edge as they pulled down 38 rebounds while Benedictine finished with 34. The Bobcats dished out ten assists with the Ravens handing out six.
 
The 'Cats had two more turnovers than Benedictine as they finished with 14 miscues. Peru State swatted away seven Raven shots while Benedictine blocked two shots. The Bobcats finished the contest with nine steals with the Ravens nabbing five.
 
Peru Individual Statistics
 
Three Bobcats finished in double figures with all seven players playing in the contest contributing in the scoring. Colley and Tanksley both finished with 17 points while Brannon added 13. Vasa was two shy of double figures.

 
Brannon finished with a double-double as he had a game-high ten rebounds. Brooks added six boards.
 
Colley dished out seven assists with McReynolds finishing with two dimes.
 
Vasa blocked five shots in the game while Brannon and Brooks each were credited with one.
 
Tanksley led the team with three steals while Colley and McReynolds each grabbed two.
 
Upcoming Games
 
The Bobcats have one more regular season away game and that will be on Saturday as Peru State will face Mount Mercy in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at 2 p.m. The Mustangs are 13-14 overall and are at 8-13 in the Heart.
 
Peru State will finish the regular season with a pair of home games with the first coming on Wednesday, February 26, when Graceland (Iowa) will be the opponent at approximately 7:30 p.m. The Yellowjackets are 9-19 on the season and are 6-16 in conference play.
 
The final regular season game of the year will be on Saturday, February 29, when league-leading William Penn (Iowa) visits the confines of the Al Wheeler Activity Center for Senior Day. The seventh-ranked Statesmen are 23-3 on the year and are 17-3 in the Heart, 3.5 games ahead of the Bobcats at the time of this press release.
 
Heart post-season play will begin on Thursday, March 5, with the highest four seeds hosting first-round games.