Avila Falls in Home Opener to Conference Heavyweights Southwestern

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Avila men's basketball hit the floor at Mabee Fieldhouse for the first time this season by welcoming in (13) Southwestern (6-0, 2-0 KCAC), which looked the part of one of the best teams in the region in a 109-63 victory over the Eagles (1-3, 0-2 KCAC) on Saturday afternoon at Mabee Fieldhouse.

The Moundbuilders figure to be one of the best teams not only in the KCAC but in this region of the NAIA this season, making them an unwelcome foe for the first game at home for this new era of Avila men's basketball. And they certainly looked the part: Southwestern was a fluid, well-connected squad that put together a stellar shooting day (59% from the field and 57% from beyond the arc), which never gave the Eagles a chance to rally back.

Avila more than kept things close in the first half, clogging up the lanes and hitting a couple of key shots to stay within reach, 46-27, at the halftime break. But the Eagles never led in the game and were unable to withstand Southwestern's consistently efficient and deep offense, especially after halftime: once Southwestern truly settled in, Avila was unable to knock them off their rhythm.

Despite dealing with foul trouble early, star SC scorer Cevin Clark ended up in front with 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting. Do-it-all forward Andrew O'Brien scored 21 points with six rebounds and seven assists, and Justin DeMaria scored 19 off the bench.

Avila head coach Tyler Bredehoeft was able to flash his bench and experiment with a lot of different rotations in this matchup against yet another very good team: 15 Eagles saw the floor, including eight players with 15-plus minutes of work in a very busy time of year. James Ross III paced the Eagles with 13 points; Robert Lee III scored eight with four assists; Josh Kilpatrick had nine and three; four other players scored either five or six.

The Eagles will have to rebound quickly because their jam-packed November slate will next take them to Truman State for an exhibition match on Sunday, November 19 at 2 PM. Details on how to watch and follow along are posted on our website, avilaathletics.com.