ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – Six players reached double figures as the St. Bonaventure men's basketball team closed its non-conference schedule with a win over Le Moyne, 92-81, on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 20) at the Reilly Center. The Bonnies' 92 points were a season high, eclipsing the team's 89-point performance against Canisius on Nov. 8.
Frank Mitchell fell one rebound shy of recording a seventh straight double-double, finishing with 21 points and nine rebounds while shooting 7-for-10 from the field and 7-for-9 from the free throw line.
Dasonte Bowen posted 15 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Daniel Egbuniwe scored 14 points – nine of which came in the second half – while shooting 5-for-9 from the field and 4-for-7 from three.
Cayden Charles posted his third double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Buddy Simmons II and
Joe Grahovac scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, to round out the double-figure scorers for the Bonnies (11-2).
FIRST HALF
The Bonnies started the game hot from three-point range, making each of their first five long-range shots. Each of St. Bonaventure's first 15 points came from behind the arc. SBU used its sharp shooting to build a significant advantage in the opening minutes, leading 22-12 with 12:40 before the break.
Le Moyne (5-7) responded, outscoring St. Bonaventure 16-5 over the next 5:14 to take the lead. The Dolphins would extend their lead as high as nine points after a 7-0 run in which all three Le Moyne baskets were assisted by Jakai Sanders.
Five unanswered points from Egbuniwe pulled the Bonnies within four. After the teams traded baskets throughout the rest of the first half, St. Bonaventure went into the locker room trailing, 47-42.
SECOND HALF
Le Moyne continued its scoring surge with an 8-2 run out of the break, giving the Dolphins a game-high 11-point lead with 18:49 to play.
Egbuniwe made each of his next three three-point attempts, scoring nine of the Bonnies' next 12 points to shift the momentum in favor of St. Bonaventure. The spurt kicked off a 16-2 run for St. Bona's, culminating in putback jam by Mitchell that rocked the Reilly Center. When the run came to an end, St. Bonaventure held a 60-57 lead with 14:54 remaining.
Mitchell scored or assisted on six of the Bonnies' next eight points, helping SBU build a seven-point advantage. The Dolphins were not done, however, using a 7-0 run to tie the game at 68.
With 5:51 to play and the game tied at 72, the Bonnies went on a 12-0 run behind five points from Mitchell and four from Bowen.
The run gave St. Bonaventure a lead it would not relinquish. After Simmons II (6-for-6) and Bowen (2-for-2) were perfect from the free throw line, the Bonnies closed out the 92-81 win.
"Give (Le Moyne) credit, they attacked us and hit some big threes," said St. Bonaventure coach
Mark Schmidt. "We've got to play 40 minutes. Against the teams we're about to play, starting with VCU, if we play one half it's not going to be enough."
UP NEXT
St. Bonaventure will open conference play at VCU on New Year's Eve (Dec. 31). Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
NOTES
- Bowen scored 15-or-more points in his third straight game.
- Egbuniwe is shooting 53.9 percent from the field (34-for-63) and 45.7 percent from three-point range (16-for-35) since returning from injury on Nov. 20. He has made at least four field goals in six of his last seven games.
- With 10 boards, Charles led the Bonnies in rebounding for the first time this season.
- Six SBU players reached double figures for the third time this season. The team did not have six players in double figures even once in 2024-25.
- St. Bonaventure made a season-best 13 three-pointers.
- In the second half, the Bonnies recorded nine steals and forced 11 turnovers despite not forcing any turnovers in the first half.
- Le Moyne's Jakai Sanders posted a program-record 16 assists.
