PERU, Neb. – Missouri Baptist Men's Basketball (5-2) got off to a fast start and never looked back in a 74-51 win over No. 24 Benedictine College (Kan.) (5-2) on Friday night. The Spartans will take on tournament host Peru State (Neb.) on Saturday in the second game of the Heart of America/AMC Classic.
 
A rare three-pointer from John Yaeger opened the scoring 24 seconds in and the Spartans quickly raced to a 9-0 lead. Offense would be hard to come by after that though and MBU endured a stretch of more than eight minutes without a point. Fortunately, their defense saved the day.
 
The Ravens came in averaging nearly 80 points a game but in the first nine minutes on Friday night they managed a paltry three points (1-9 FG). The Spartans rediscovered the shooting touch eventually and took a 30-17 lead into halftime.
 
They kept their foot on the gas in the second half, maintaining a double-digit advantage for all but 19 seconds. The Spartans even found another level offensively, shooting a blistering 60.7% (17-28) in the final 20 minutes.
 
Benedictine, like Webster and Haskell before them, struggled to find an answer for MBU's RJ Pair. Pair matched his career-high for the second time in three games with 19 points (7-12 FG). The graduate senior from Texas added five rebounds and three steals.
 
Point guard Jadis White was 5-6 from the field for 11 points. The Spartans' go-to assist man doled out a season-high seven and matched his teammate Pair with three steals. Last year's leading scorer John Yaeger finished with 14 points to make it three Spartans in double-figures.
 
As a team, Missouri Baptist finished the night at 56.4% (31-55) from the field marking the first time since 2018 that the Spartans have shot better than 50% in three straight games.
 
They'll look to keep the points and the wins coming on Saturday against Peru State. Tip time is once again scheduled for 6 pm.