The 6th-ranked Benedictine men’s basketball team returned to action for the first time in 2015 on Saturday as they hosted their final non-con game of the season against Bethel College.

Benedictine (12-3) won their third straight as they earned a 71-63 win over Bethel (8-8) inside the Ralph Nolan Gymnasium.

The Ravens knocked in their first two 3-pointers of the game and never looked back Saturday as they led wire to wire against the Threshers.

Benedictine built as much as a 16-point lead before Bethel used an 11-3 run to close within six points before the Ravens took a 32-24 lead into the break.

The Ravens used a 20-9 start to the second half to pull ahead by 20 points and were able to extend their lead to as much as 21 before the Threshers started to heat up from the floor late in the game.

Benedictine converted on 12 of 16 from the charity stripe in the second half and finished the game at 70.8 percent.

The Ravens also controlled the glass, outrebounding the Threshers 45-29 which led to a 34-22 advantage in points in the paint.

Benedictine had a balanced scoring attack, led by the 14 points of Jonathan Anaekwe. John Harris Jr., was the only other Raven in double figure with 12 points but the Ravens got nine points each from Jake Schannuth and Jallen Messersmith.

Messersmith led the Ravens in rebounds with 10, which included four offensive rebounds. He also added two blocks defensively.

The Ravens return to Heart of America Athletic Conference play on Thursday as they travel to Baldwin City for a 7:30 p.m. game against Baker University.

— BC Sports Information —