Boston College will look to extend its winning streak to four games when it visits Saint Louis for a nonconference game on Saturday.
The Eagles (6-3) are coming off their best win of the season. They led visiting Notre Dame from start to finish in a 73-57 win on Dec. 3 — the last time they played — in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams.
James Karnik led the way with 17 points and a career-high-tying 13 rebounds, while Quinten Post added 13 points and T.J. Bickerstaff scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half. Makai Ashton-Langford and DeMarr Langford each added 10 points against the Fighting Irish (3-4).
“I was happy that we found a way to execute our plan and to come out on the winning side,” Boston College first-year coach Earl Grant said. “We will take this win and try to build on it. But we know we have to keep scratching and clawing, and we have a lot of work to do. We have to embrace where we are.”
Langford averages a team-high 12.1 points to go along with 4.9 rebounds per game, while Ashton-Langford leads the team with 3.7 assists per game to go along with 10.8 points. Bickerstaff averages 10.9 points and a team-high 7.7 rebounds per game.
Saint Louis (7-3) is on a two-game slide after falling at home to Belmont 64-59 on Tuesday.
Gibson Jimerson tied his season high with 21 points and Yuri Collins added 11 points, six assists and five rebounds. But the Billikens squandered an 11-point second-half lead and were outscored 12-5 in the final four minutes after taking a 54-52 lead on Collins’ free throw with 4:23 remaining.
The Billikens were outrebounded 40-32, including 13-8 on the offensive boards.
“They killed us on the glass, and it’s something we have to work on,” Saint Louis forward Terrence Hargrove Jr. said. “We can’t let that happen again going forward. Everybody has to buy in with rebounding. It’s what the program is known for — toughness, rebounding and defense. It can’t just be one guy or just our bigs. It’s a team thing.”
Jimerson leads the team in scoring at 16.5 points per game, while Marten Linssen is second at 11.1. Collins averages 9.4 points to go along with a team-high 6.8 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Francis Okoro averages 7.5 points and leads the team in rebounds (6.7) and blocks (1.3).
–Field Level Media
