Courtesy: Eric McFarland Johnson was just three assists shy of tying the school-record of 14.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. --- California Baptist University suffocated Holy Names Saturday night. They also played a little team ball on the other end.

Put the two together, and the Lancers rolled to a convincing 99-63 victory to improve to 3-0 on the season.

The Lancers limited the Hawks to just six field goals in the first half as they blew the game open, taking a 35-point lead into the locker room. All 12 Lancers played, 11 of them at least 10 minutes. All 12 Lancers scored, five of them in double-digits. CBU had 33 assists on 43 makes. Indeed, it was a collective effort.

“We got a lot of production tonight from everybody,” said CBU Head Coach Tim Collins. “The guys have shown a willingness to share the ball and play together, and everyone has the ability to contribute, which they did tonight.”

Case in point, Josh Barrett came off the bench and had 11 points in 10 minutes, the first double-digit scoring night of his collegiate career. Jamar Ransome came off the bench and had 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists and no turnovers. Justus Von Wright came off the bench and went 6-for-6 from the field, scoring 13 points in 14 minutes.

Then there was usual suspect Davey Hopkins, who had 13 points and five rebounds in 18 minutes. Luke Evans led all scorers with 17 points and nine rebounds, going 7-for-8 from the field. Kelly Johnson had a game-high 11 assists to go along with six points and six rebounds.

But the assault began at the defensive end in the first 20 minutes.
   
David Scott’s 3-point play cut the Lancer lead to 19-13 with 9:13 to play, but the Lancers put a stranglehold on the Hawks and exploded on a 34-5 run to close the half. Evans started the run with a lay-up. Johnson then stole the ensuing inbounds pass and scored a lay-up and the Lancers were off and running. The Hawks had just two field goals in the final 10 minutes of the half.

“We are a quick team and got after them defensively with a lot of speed,” said Collins. “It took a toll on them. We had the right defensive plan and played good team defense, forcing a lot of tough shots. We made it hard for them to get into their stuff and get a good look, and though it was a team effort, a big reason that happened was because of Kelly (Johnson). He just created havoc out there.”

The Hawks shot just 20 percent (6-for-30) in the first half and finished 21-for-60 (.350) for the game. Leading scorer Joshua Smith, who transferred from CBU after last season and is leading the Hawks in scoring, was held to just seven points, two in the first half.

And while the Lancers were keeping the Hawks off the scoreboard, they were busy putting points on the board themselves at breakneck speed. The Lancers shot 60 percent (21-for-35) in the first half, scored 16 fast-break points and out-scored the Hawks in the paint, 32-8. And that was just in the first half.

Once the Lancers opened up their 53-18 halftime lead, the margin never shrunk below 30 points while at one point it ballooned to 41 (97-56) with 2:53 to play. For the second time in three games, however, the Lancers came up a mere point short of the century mark.

In last week’s season-opener, the Lancers scored 72 of their 99 points in the paint. Tonight, they finished with 66. The Lancers finished 58.9 percent (43-for-73) from the floor. The 33 assists is the highest total since CBU had a school-record 57 in a win over Redlands Dec. 10, 2004, when the Lancers scored an NAIA-record 181 points.