[Highland Heights, KY] - Shaw got off to a slow start and could never find a shooting touch, falling to #33 Christian Brothers 70-53 in the opening day of play at the John L. Griffin/Lions Club Classic hosted by Northern Kentucky.
Christian Brothers not only hit a staggering 13 for 27 from the three-point line, but held Preseason All-CIAA selection Tony Smith scoreless. The Bears managed only two of 13 from behind the arc, and only shot 38.8 percent from the floor.
The game started sloppy and while the Buccaneers righted themselves to build a 7-1 lead four minutes into the game, the Bears struggled to get their legs under them and find a shooting touch.
With 13:52 left in the first, Malik Alvin drove the lane for a layup that cut the Christian Brothers lead to two at 7-5. The Bucs went on a 13-3 scoring run, building their lead to 20-8 before Alvin hit a jumper to bring the Bears back to within 11 at the midway point of the first half.
The Bucs extended their lead to as many as 16, but three free throws by Alvin as the half ended cut the lead to ten.
Alvin continued to carry the Bears as the second half opened, hitting a pair of free throws that cut the lead to nine. The Bears slowly chipped away at the lead, and with 12:01 left in the game, Alvin hit a pair of free throws that cut the Christian Brothers lead to 46-40.
That would prove to be the bright spot for the Bears. Over the next six minutes, the Bucs reeled off a 18-4 scoring run, building their lead to 64-44 on Harry Green's three pointer with 5:43 left in the game.
From there, the Bears battled to simply keep the margin to under 20, as Christian Brothers built a 22-point lead a minute later.
The Bears got scoring from Latrail McCoy and Alvin in the closing minutes to cut the deficit to 15 before a last-second dunk by Stephen Duckett put an exclamation point on the 70-53 win for the Bucs.
Alvin led all scorers with 28 points. McCoy had 11. Only four other Bears scored, none of them managing more than six points.
In contrast, four Buccaneers scored in double figures, led by Dennis with 18 and Zack Warner with 17. Cory McArthy had 12 points and Harry Green had 11.
The Bears outrebounded Christian Brothers by a 31 to 28 margin. Junius Chaney had eight rebounds to lead the Bears while Dennis had ten to lead the Bucs. Dennis also led the Bucs with six assists.
The Bears continue play in the Griffin/Lions Club Classic tomorrow at 5:30 when they take on Lane.
Photos: Latrail McCoy (left) had 11 points for Shaw while Malik Alvin (right) led all scorers with 28.
