Tre Day! Beard eclipses 1,000-point mark; Lovelace's 22 leads five double-figure scorers in SSU's 86-67 win over Alice Lloyd (Ky.)

PORTSMOUTH, Ohio -- As possibly the most prolific long-range scorer to ever set foot on Shawnee State's campus and a recent bachelor's degree grad in honors fashion, Tre Beard has certainly put his stamp on what an elite player -- and person -- looks like within the Shawnee State men's basketball program.

So it was only fitting that the way Beard obtained his 1,000th point was through a three-point field goal.

Following a block on the defensive end of the floor by AJ Belton, it was clear that Beard was feeling it early again -- and wasn't going to wait around to get the four-digit milestone out of the way.

Getting the ball out front with just under 16:35 to play in the first half, Beard sized up the Alice Lloyd Eagle defender in front of him, and within a three-second span, knew that the scant gap that was given to him was more than enough for the opening that he needed.

As with the 199 three-point field goals that the grad student had previously hit in his career, Beard's 200th career three-point field goal rang true, fittingly giving the multi-year starter his 1,000th point on his first three-point attempt and overall shot attempt of the game.

It was destined to be Shawnee State's night from then on.

Beard enjoyed another sensationally efficient night with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field and a 4-of-5 mark from three-point range, grabbed five rebounds and notched three assists to boot as one of five double-figure scorers with Donovan Lovelace's game-high 22 points and six rebounds, Ezra McKee's 12-point, 10-rebound double-double and 21 combined points from Cory Gardner and Marcos Vazquez adding to the count in Shawnee State's 86-67 victory over Alice Lloyd (Ky.) Tuesday evening in Waller Gymnasium.

Game Summary

Shawnee State, who played at a high level on both ends of the floor, especially over the final 20 minutes of the River States Conference bout, was stout in every area, shooting 56.1 percent from the field (31-of-55) and 42.4 percent (8-of-19) from three-point range, all while posting 13 assists on its 31 made baskets as a team.

Defensively, SSU held Alice Lloyd to 27-of-66 shooting (40.9 percent) and a 5-of-26 mark (19.2 percent) from three, while also outrebounding the Eagles by a plus-seven margin (36-29) on the glass.

Ultimately, the Bears led for each of the game's final 20:06 and were in front for 30:18 of the contest's final 31:40 overall in what was a complete effort.

Beard keeps reaching higher

From the outset, it was destined to be another special night for Tre Beard, who continues to add to one of the most efficient campaigns by a men's basketball player in a single-season in program history to this point.

Beard spent much of the first half after the 1,000-point trifecta setting the table for his teammates, as the grad student posted four rebounds and two assists in the opening half. No. 3 then blitzed the Alice Lloyd defense in the second half, going a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 3-of-3 from the three-point arc to finish with 14 points in all.

For his career, Beard now has 1,011 points and is officially the 20th member in the history of the men's basketball program to score 1,000 career points at Shawnee State. His opening three-point field goal of the game also made Beard just the fourth player all time to hit at least 200 three-point field goals in a single career at SSU -- with Beard ultimately holding 203 threes made during his time with the Bears.

He joins Jeff Fraley, Ryan Hudson and Antwain Lavender as the only individuals in program history to hit at least 200 or more threes in a career at Shawnee State -- and is the first player in 21 years since Lavender, who played from 2001 to 2004, to accomplish such a feat. Fraley, who hit 261 during his time at Shawnee State, is the program record holder in that category.

Beard is now averaging 19.7 points on 52.8 percent shooting from the field and a distinguished 52.3 percent shooting mark from three-point range. His 92.5 percent free throw shooting mark at the free throw line is still on pace to break the all-time program mark from the charity stripe in a single-season.

Lovelace scores on max efficiency

A promising big man with tantalizing tools, 6-9 sophomore Donovan Lovelace made much of his hay at the free throw line Tuesday evening.

Lovelace already enjoyed a highly efficient opening half with eight points and two rebounds on 2-of-2 shooting from the field and a 4-of-4 mark from the free throw stripe -- but stepped his game up further in terms of aggression, scoring 22 points and posting six rebounds on 4-of-4 shooting from the field for the contest after a 14-point, four-rebound second half where Lovelace went 9-of-10 from the free throw line.

For the season, Lovelace is ultimately up to 13.5 points and 6.3 rebounds on 51.4 percent shooting from the field and a 50 percent mark from three-point range to boot. The Dallas, Texas native is also shooting 81.4 percent from the free throw line.

McKee, Gardner, Vazquez, Belton get in on fun

Behind the lead scoring duo, the quartet of Ezra McKee, Cory Gardner, Marcos Vazquez and AJ Belton more than performed in their roles, as well.

McKee, who nabbed a double-double with 14 minutes still to play in the contest against Alice Lloyd, ultimately finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, two blocks and a steal. A 6-7 combo wing/forward who oozes potential, McKee arguably had the highlight play of the night with 12:52 to play in the game.

A trailer on the play, Lovelace got a defensive rebound and fired a pass to Gardner, whose momentum was carrying the graduate student toward the baseline. Gardner, however, had the presence of mind to flip the ball back to the trailing McKee, who received Gardner's pass and packed the ball home for a posterization of an Alice Lloyd defender in a play that rose much of the Waller Gymnasium crowd to its feet.

Gardner, who has made winning plays on a regular basis since joining the lineup after graduate transferring from Brescia (Ky.), essentially cut up his own highlight tape with a six-point, five-assist second half that included the clever dump off to McKee, a fluid finish on a flush attempt, and an acrobatic layup off of a pass from McKee where Gardner had the ball down at his ankles in mid-air, gathered, and placed the ball off the window for a bucket. The Owensboro, Ky. native finished with 10 points, five assists and five rebounds on 5-of-10 shooting.

Vazquez, who supplied 11 points, arguably enjoyed his best performance of the New Year with an 11-point, three-rebound, three-assist outing that saw the 6-0 junior go 5-of-6 from the floor to lead the bench scoring.

Belton, however, arguably played as big of a role as any player on the court in the winning result.

Drawing the toughest defensive assignment on the floor in talented 6-4 forward and Alice Lloyd senior Jared Strickland, Belton proceeded to hold Strickland to six points under his average as Strickland posted 12 points and four rebounds on 4-of-10 shooting from the field. Strickland also turned the basketball over four times and didn't collect an assist.

Offensively, Belton also added in nine points on 3-of-6 shooting -- to go along with the two blocks that the 6-5 senior from Indianapolis, Ind. had on the defensive end of the floor as well.

Additional

Amaury Hawes, who continues to impress in larger minutes as of late, also supplied six points and two rebounds on 3-of-4 shooting in 18 minutes of game action for the Bears.

Shawnee State returns to action Saturday afternoon with a River States Conference matchup against Oakland City at the Johnson Center in Oakland City, Ind. Game time is set for 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT. The Shawnee State women's basketball contest against the Mighty Oaks follows at 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT.