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The Northwest men's basketball team kicked off its season in impressive fashion against Peru State Tuesday night at Bearcat Arena.
The Bearcats beat the Bobcats 99-53 and started the game on an 8-0 run, only giving up 17 points in the first half. Coach Steve Tappmeyer was pleased with the outcome of the game but sees a lot of things the 'Cats need to work on before the competition gets tougher later in the season.
"A lot of system things we're still breaking down on that aren't obvious to an average fan," Tappmeyer said. "They're things that are really going to hurt us against our top opponent that can knock shots down. It's good for us to get on the floor and play one."
They also saw a lot of open shots against the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics opponent and shot 61.7 percent for the entire game.
Because of the blowout win, the Northwest bench got the chance to see the court, which will help down the road and give the team something to look at on tape, Tappmeyer said.
The 'Cats started three players who had never seen the court during the regular season for Northwest and eight new players saw the court throughout the game.
"Everybody got in and got a few minutes and we were unselfish for the most part the entire game," senior forward Hunter Henry said. "We made the extra pass and bailed people out on defense when we had too."
The young team was comfortable in its first regular season game and it showed in its blow out. The new 'Cats accounted for 58 of the 99 points and 18 of the 22 assists.
"I felt real good, I think we worked really well as a team tonight," junior guard Edriss Floyd said. "Come out and played hard and strapped it on. When it's game time, we all play hard."
The 'Cats defense came out strong creating 16 turnovers in the first half. Tappmeyer said Peru State got rattled early and that's what the plan is every game.
The 'Cats next chance to see the court comes at 5:30 p.m. Friday in St. Joseph against the Rockhurst Hawks.
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