BEAUMONT, Texas – Junior Zjori Bosha came off the bench to record his first career double-double, and set a school record with 10 steals, Saturday afternoon as the Lamar University Cardinals rocked Austin College, 109-58. Bosha was one of five Cardinals to score in double figures against the Roos.
 
Junior Colton Weisbrod led all scorers with 18 points on 7-of-10 (.700) shooting, including a 4-of-5 (.800) clip from the free throw line. He also tied for team-high honors with eight rebounds. Freshman Cameron McGee scored a career-high 16, and sophomore Nick Garth added 13 points on 3-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Garth was one of two Cardinals to knock down at least three triples on the afternoon. Junior Joey Frenchwood also chipped in 11 points.
 
Eight of the 13 Cardinals who played against Austin College scored at least seven points for an offense that shot nearly 55 percent (37-of-68/.544). Big Red dominated every hustle stat outrebounding the Roos by 13, 44-31, as well as recording significant advantages in points in the paint (+32), points off turnovers (+33), second-chance points (+14), fast-break points (+18) and bench scoring (+38).
 
"I thought for the most part we shared the basketball and made the extra pass offensively," said LU head coach Tic Price. "We started off slow, but (Zjori) Bosha came off the bench and really ignited us. He came in and got a double-double which was huge. With five guys in double-figures this was a special win today.
 
"We needed to get home and sleep in our own beds because we've been on the road so long. I think our guys were a little excited to be back (home) playing in the Montagne Center," added Price.
 
Austin College was 21-of-51 (.412) from the field when they could hold the ball long enough to get off a shot, but spent the majority of the contest just trying to hang on to the basketball. LU forced the Roos into 34 turnovers. The Cardinals allowed only one Austin College player to reach double figures (Brian Baehl – 11 points), while no other player scored more than eight points.
 
"Zjori was special today recording 10 steals," said Price. "It was good to see those type numbers from Zjori. He has had to battle quite a bit of knee issues during his career. He's been getting his rehab all during that time but he is now starting to move a lot better. Zjori has done a good job all year of using his length to get in passing lanes and cause problems. When he is healthy he gives us quality minutes."
 
The Roos took the initial lead of the game hitting a three-pointer on their first possession and pushing that lead to eight points early in the contest. The Red and White responded with an 8-0 run to tie the game in less than two minutes and after that Austin College could manage no more than a one-point lead, and that advantage came following free throws on their next two possessions.
 
The Cardinals then rattled off a 30-6 run to build a 23-point first half advantage and never looked back. LU took a 27-point lead, 55-28, into the locker room and pushed their advantage to as many as 53 in the second half.
 
The Cardinals will be back in action Friday when they travel to Edinburg, Texas to take on UT Rio Grande Valley. The game against the Vaqueros will tip off 7 p.m.
 
-LU CARDINALS-