BEAUMONT, Texas — Lamar University shot 50 percent from the field and outrebounded its opponent by 11 to open the Alvin Brooks era with a win Tuesday evening over Wiley College, 67-50.
A 2019 Cardinal Hall of Honor inductee, Brooks was named the program’s head coach in April and Tuesday night marked his first official win as Cardinals head coach.
Big Red finished the night 27-of-54 overall, including an 8-of-23 (.348) effort from long range. LU was nearly perfect from the free throw line converting 5 of 6 free throws. The Cardinals received a huge lift from their bench getting 26 points from the reserves (an 11-point advantage over Wiley’s bench).
The Cardinals also outrebounded their guests by 11, 41-30, but only seven of those boards came on the offensive end of the floor (leading to nine second chance points).
Three players scored in double figures led by 15 points from Silsbee native Jordyn Adams. The Austin Peay transfer also added four rebounds and five assists in 18 minutes of action. Beaumont sophomore Kasen Harrison came up just short of a triple-double with 13 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, while senior Davion Buster came off the bench to add 11 points.
Although shooting 40-percent in the final half, the Wildcats struggled out of the gate opening the game with eight field goals (.258) in the first. Just three of their first eight makes were from long range. Wiley (4-2) was led by Timothy Holland’s 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
The Cardinals (1-0) stormed out to an 11-point lead, 13-2, in the game’s first six minutes and never looked back. LU built its advantage to as many as 14 points in the first half and saw that lead climb to as many as 21 in the second.
The Cardinals will take a step up in competition Saturday when the travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on Miami (Ohio) – who opened their season with a win over Georgia Tech. The game against the Red Hawks will tip off at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN3.