BEMIDJI, Minn. (BSU Gymnasium) -- Bemidji State University men's basketball thrived in the paint Tuesday night during its season-opening win over Concordia University-St. Paul, 82-67, at BSU Gymnasium. The Beavers move to 1-0 on the season as they outscored the Golden Bears in the paint, 56-32.

The Beavers were led in the lane by sophomore forward John Sutherland with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting in his debut with the team while senior guards Mohamed Kone and Travis Bianco, also in his first game at BSU, added 17 points each. Fellow newcomer and senior Gare Ewefada totaled double-digit scoring with 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting.

Concordia-St. Paul led off the game with five straight points before Bianco hit a jumper to spark an 8-0 run for Bemidji State. Bianco and Kone combined for all eight points during the run before Sutherland chipped in his first basket to extend the lead to five, 12-7, just over five minutes into play.

The BSU lead hovered around five points until two minutes later when BSU put in three second-chance baskets, capped off by a put-back dunk by Ewefada to take an 11-point, 22-11 lead. Bemidji State's lead remained around the 10-point mark through the end of the first half, taking a 43-29 lead into the halftime break.

The Golden Bears opened the second half on a 12-4 run that spanned nearly five minutes, cutting the Beavers' lead to just four, 47-43. BSU went 2-of-8 from the field over the first 5:24 of the second half until an Ewefada jumper sparked the first of five straight baskets for the team. Part of the stretch was an 8-0 run by BSU that was highlighted by an alley-oop dunk by Kone from Bianco off a steal.

Bemidji State's lead never went below nine points and reached as many as 18 points following an 11-2 run. Sutherland hit his final field goal of the game with 4:42 to play for a 74-56 advantage for the Beavers.

BSU finished the game shooting 54.0 percent from the field (34-63), 16.7 percent from 3-point range (2-12) and 75.0 percent from the free throw line (12-16). CSP converted 40.9 percent of its field goals (27-66), 23.3 percent from long range (7-30) and 66.7 from the free throw line (6-9). The Beavers gave the ball away on 16 turnovers that led to 19 points for the Golden Bears but put in 19 second-chance points compared to seven for CSP.

Bemidji State returns to BSU Gymnasium Nov. 19-20 for a two-game weekend, beginning with the University of Minnesota-Morris at 6 p.m. Friday and ending with Northland College at 3 p.m. Saturday.

For more information on the Bemidji State athletic programs, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeavers), or like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers).

Nestled in Northern Minnesota's wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's and women's hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

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