Box Score LAKELAND, Fla.—Playing in front of a large, but silent crowd was an odd circumstance for the Southeastern men's basketball team.
Despite a slow start, a pair of double-doubles from Grant Bryant and CJ Reese pushed the Fire to a 93-75 win over Johnson University.
The win improved the Fire to 9-1 on the season, marking the most wins by an SEU men's basketball team in its first 10 games of the season since prior to 2001.
During the annual "Silent Night" game, the fans remain silent until the Fire score their 10
th point of the contest. With 14:04 left in the half, Bryant hit a layup to give SEU a 10-4 lead, and sparked a 9-2 run.
"Silent Night is always a fun thing, but those first 10 points are always really eerie with the gym being quiet," said coach
R-Jay Barsh. "Then, you push and go on a run and you're playing basketball again."
Jeremy Oppenheimer scored a game-high 23 points, converting all eight of his field goal attempts, which included a layup with 9:07 to play in the first half to give the Fire a 27-12 advantage.
"It was fun to see him get going," said Barsh of Oppenheimer. "In a game like tonight, where (Johnson University) was playing a lot of scrappy defense, you just have to make shots and finish at the rim."
At the break, the Fire led 45-28, with Reese converting two free throws to give SEU its biggest lead of the half.
Bryant, again, got the crowd to erupt with a thunderous dunk into the north basket to start the second half. That play kicked off a 10-2 run that also saw Isaac Barsh tomahawk home a pass from Ryan Atkins. Bryant finished with 13 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
Reese added 11 points, 10 assists, and three steals in 35 minutes of work. Atkins also reached double figures, scoring 10 points, and had five rebounds, two steals, and an assist.
The Suns (2-6) committed 15 turnovers that resulted in 22 SEU points.
Southeastern returns to Sun Conference play on Saturday, traveling to Ave Maria for a 6 p.m. start.
