SSU men give (RV) Bethel, Ind. top run in 82-78 defeat

Prior to its road contest against Bethel (Ind.), Shawnee State men's basketball head coach Michael Hunter said that his team, while tight from a chemistry standpoint, needed to grow closer together in order to battle for a road win.

While the Shawnee State men's basketball program didn't come out with that road victory Saturday evening against Bethel, the Bears showcased a evident growth in that area and gave the Indiana-based Pilots top run.

Spearheaded by a combined 48 points and 20 rebounds from Keith Germain and Tyreke Johnson, and a physical and well-executed brand of basketball, Shawnee State made Bethel, who was receiving votes in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 Poll, sweat darts as the two programs swapped the lead an incredible 27 times while battling to 15 additional ties in what was certainly one of the most competitive contests to date in the 2023-24 NAIA men's basketball campaign.

However, free throw shooting and offensive rebounding proved to be game-deciding numbers, as Bethel's 19-of-29 free throw shooting percentage mark compared to Shawnee State's 8-of-17 charity stripe mark, and the Pilots' 18 offensive rebounds to the Bears' eight, loomed large in a 82-78 setback for Shawnee State Saturday evening in Mishawaka, Ind.

The four-point setback, however, didn't dampen what was ultimately a high-level performance by the Bears.

Stats tell the tale on that fact, as Shawnee State shot 31-of-64 (48.4 percent) from the field -- including an 8-of-19 mark (42.1 percent) from distance -- and posted 16 assists to just eight turnovers for a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, all while matching Bethel with 44 points in the paint and getting excellent shots off throughout the vast majority of the contest in doing so.

"Our chemistry's been good," Hunter said. "I believe that we've been growing closer together through these road tests. We haven't been home yet for a game, but there's been some good team-bonding activities that we've done off of the court, and the guys really like each other, so it's starting to show on the floor."

Germain, Johnson show standout leadership

Faced with a tough task in going on the road into a hostile environment, Shawnee State senior forward Keith Germain and Shawnee State junior guard Tyreke Johnson showed no fear.

The duo, in fact, came out red-hot to start Saturday afternoon's contest -- as the pair set the tone early by combining to score each of Shawnee State's first 16 points while helping the Bears establish a 16-8 advantage with 15:06 still to play in the opening half of action.

The Southeastern United States natives only continued to build on their play in the opening five minutes of action -- as the duo proceeded to play bully ball throughout the 40-minute affair.

Germain ultimately posted 17 of his 24 points in the first half and six of his 11 rebounds in the second half of competition en route to a double-double, while Johnson posted 13 of his 24 points in the opening half of play and grabbed four rebounds in both 20-minute stanzas. Germain, a 6-5 senior from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., posted four blocks and a steal, and both Germain and Johnson combined to shoot 19-of-34 from the floor with four assists while committing just two turnovers over the entirety of the contest to boot.

"That shows that we've got some good kids that are close together," Hunter said. "We went in and talked to them after the Morehead State game, and yes, they were NCAA Division I and a great program at that, but I felt like we got bullied for the size that we have. We just challenged them, but they are the ones who responded and put that effort to good use on the floor. Keith and Tyreke both stepped up to the plate. I've known those guys for a long time and known them since I was at Lakeland Community College, so I know what buttons to push, and they both played huge games. We just needed to get on track scoring-wise, and now that they've seen the ball go in the hole, I believe they'll only grow from that."

For the season, Germain now is averaging 23.5 points, eight rebounds, 2.5 blocks and a steal per contest while shooting 53.8 percent from the field, while Johnson is now averaging 15.5 points, seven rebounds and 2.5 assists through the first two games of the year.

"Keith has already produced -- this is his second game with 20-plus points," Hunter said. "He's a senior and he's already proven himself as a River States Conference talent. Tyreke has been off for a few years, and he's just working his way back in. It was due. We just got to keep it up."

Downtown Dawson

Adding to what was already impressive efforts by Germain and Johnson, senior guard John Dawson brought a steady presence to the floor in his third game out.

When Germain and Johnson weren't scoring, Dawson was -- as the Huntington, W. Va. native was poised and confident throughout, scoring eight points in both halves of play en route to a 16-point, four-assist performance where Dawson shot 6-of-13 from the field and 4-of-7 from three-point range.

However, Hunter was just as impressed -- if not moreso -- by the defensive presence that Dawson brought to the table, as well as the senior's ability to run the offense.

"That's John's game," Hunter said. "He's a scorer. That's what he was brought here to do. Today, however, he really defended a lot better than we usually see from him, and he was able to set the table for some guys offensively as well because Bethel started helping to cover him. He was driving the lane too. We're coming together offensively. We just got to keep it going."

Additional

J.R. Lumsden, Tre Beard, Damon Charles, AJ Belton and Tony Webb, Jr. all played significant minutes Saturday, with Lumsden notching seven points, three rebounds, and three assists, Charles -- in his first career start -- posting four rebounds and two assists including a beautifully executed high-low inside feed to Germain for an easy bucket in the opening half, Webb collecting a pair of blocks and Beard hitting a game-tying trey late in the second half that helped Shawnee State, who was down 71-64 at one point, take a one-point lead (76-75) late in the going.

"I thought that we have some pretty good depth," Hunter said. "If it's not one guy one night, it's another guy (stepping up to lead us). We're playing team basketball. We've just got to have somebody step up and make those free throws, and we can close out games that way. Outside of that, and giving up too many offensive rebounds, we're playing physical and sound in all of the other aspects of the game. We've just got to be better on those fronts. I believe we'll clean it up and be better moving forward."

Shawnee State (0-2) will have no time to dwell on the loss as the Bears face No. 5 Georgetown -- who has scored 80 or more points in five of its six contests and over 100 points on two different occasions while holding each of its six opponents to 70 points or less so far en route to a 6-0 overall record.

"We told them, 'There's no time to hang our heads,'" Hunter said. "We've got to get right back to it. If you hang your head too long, Georgetown will hang 100 on you.