Saint Louis broke open a close game with a 13-0 flurry early in the second half, and the Billikens ran their record to 4-0 with an 88-65 victory over Central Arkansas Tuesday night at Chaifetz Arena.
Jordan Goodwin tied his career high of six steals and surpassed Anthony Bonner as SLU’s all-time leader with 194 thefts. Bonner (1986-90) had 192 steals. Goodwin also turned in his 26th career double-double, scoring 15 points and grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds.
Gibson Jimerson poured in a game-high 21 points for the Billikens, who have scored 80 or more points in each of their first four games for the first time since the 1955-56 season.
Yuri Collins tallied a career-high 12 points, led all players with nine assists and added three steals. Javonte Perkins had 10 points and four assists, and Hasahn French collected eight rebounds.
Rylan Bergersen led Southland Conference member Central Arkansas with 16 points. Jared Chatham netted 13 points, while DeAndre Jones and Jaxson Baker tossed in 10 apiece. Jones added eight assists.
Saint Louis led 39-27 at the break, but a 9-2 Central Arkansas spurt over the first 2:06 of the second half narrowed the lead to 41-36.
That’s when Goodwin and Jimerson took over, scoring six and five points, respectively, in the 13-0 run that took just 2:16 to assemble. Central Arkansas drew no closer than 16 the rest of the game, and SLU’s 23-point victory margin matched its largest of the contest.
Goodwin’s dunk at 16:14 of the first half put the Billikens on top for good. The spread reached double digits, 18-8, with 10:24 left and expanded to 14 twice prior to halftime.
The Billikens host Evansville Saturday, Dec. 12, in a game that will be televised by NBC Sports Network. Tip time is 2 p.m.
