The Lindenwood men's basketball team opened the 2017-18 season on Friday night with a 74-63 victory over Bemidji State. The game was part of day one action in the MIAA/NSIC Classic in Wisconsin Dells, Wis.
 
"We did a great job of setting a tone and dictating to them on the defensive side of the ball," said head coach Lance Randall. "Offensively, at times, we were fragmented as a first game of the season can be. But we showed some real offensive versatility playing a flow game, as well as a power game when we needed it."
 
The Lions jumped out to a 42-25 lead after 20 minutes, thanks to hot shooting in the first half. Lindenwood hit 57.1 percent of its shots in the half, including six-of-11 from beyond the arc. The Beavers took 11 fewer shots in the first half which helped the Lions grab a big lead.  In the second half, Bemidji State was able to outscore the Lions, but just by six points as Lindenwood held on for a double-digit win.
 
Lindenwood finished the game shooting 48.3 percent from the field, and it made eight three-pointers. Bemidji State took the majority of shots from three-point range, and the Lions forced 20 missed shots from beyond the arc. Lindenwood's defense also forced 16 turnovers in the game, had eight steals, and two blocked shots.
 
The Lions outscored Bemidji State by a 31-19 margin in bench point. Drew Moore had a team-high 18 points, including making six-of-seven shots from the field. TJ Crockett also had 10 points off the bench, and Brenon Larson-Gulsvig had three.
 
"We got great contributions from key starters as well as our bench once again," said Randall.
 
Among the starters, Chandler Diekvoss had 14 points, Adam Pohlman scored 12, and Brad Newman had 10. Dominique Dobbs led the team with nine rebounds, and Pohlman had a team-high four assists.
 
Lindenwood concludes play in the event on Saturday afternoon with a 3 p.m. game versus Minnesota Duluth.
 
"Both of these Minnesota teams shoot and pass exceptionally well so we will have our hands full once again tomorrow afternoon versus Minnesota Duluth," said Randall.