Box Score

Postgame Interview with Ron Cottrell

HOUSTON – Houston Baptist senior forward Art Bernardi and sophmore guard Tyler Russell answered the call when the Huskies needed them to, as they put away Dallas Christian, 82-73, in the home opener Saturday night at Sharp Gym.
 
Bernardi hit 10-of-14 from the field to lead HBU (3-1) with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Russell wnet 8-of-14 from the field to finish with 20 points, five assists and three steals. Sophomore guard Marcel Smith added 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Freshman guard James Harper came off the bench to score nine points and pull down five boards. Senior guard Marcus Davis had eight points, five rebounds, four assists and five steals, and freshman center Spenser Gales chipped in with six points and five rebounds.
 
Chad Herring went 7-of-9 from the field and 9-of-12 from the free-throw line to lead Dallas Christian (1-7) with 23 points and seven rebounds. Malcolm McCarty went 13-of-13 from the free-throw line and had 17 points and four rebounds for the Crusaders. Max Berman had 14 points, making two three-pointers and all four of his free throws.
 
HBU shot 51 percent from the field for the game, including 3-of-7 from behind the arc, while Dallas Christian shot 38 percent from the field and only 2-of-14 from long range. The Crusaders stayed in the game at the charity stripe, making 29-of-34, compared to 21-of-30 for the Huskies.
 
Dallas Christian jumped out to a 12-6 lead, but HBU responded with a 12-0 run to lead by six with 12:25 remaining in the first half. Davis knocked down a three and Smith found Bernardi underneath for a layup to extend the Huskies' lead to 25-16.
 
After HBU took its largest lead of the half at 30-20 with 5:29 to go, Dallas Christian outscored the Huskies, 9-1, to get back to within two. Russell scored back-to-back baskets to restore HBU's advantage to six, but the Huskies only took a 39-37 lead into halftime as McCarty hit six free throws down the stretch for the Crusaders.
 
Bernardi led HBU with 10 points in the opening frame, while Russell added eight. Herring had 12 points to lead Dallas Christian, while Berman and McCarty each had eight.
 
HBU got buckets from Bernardi and Smith to open the second-half scoring, but Dallas Christian answered back with the next four. Smith buried a 3-pointer, but McCarty went to the line and sank two more free throws. The Huskies scored the next six to build their lead back to nine at 54-45 with 13:25 to go.
 
McCarty's three-point play with 11:45 remaining cut the Crusaders' deficit to five, but Harper threw down a one-handed slam on the other end for the Huskies. Herring and Will Mason scored back-to-back baskets for Dallas Christian to make HBU's lead 65-62 with 8:20 left remaining, but Russell sank a pair of free throws and Harper got a layup to put the lead back to seven.
 
A Bernardi free throw put the Huskies back on top by 10 with 1:43 on the clock and went on to close out the game by a nine-point difference.
 
The Huskies return to action when they host Pepperdine Tuesday at 7:05 p.m.