STORM LAKE, Iowa (Nov. 13, 2024) - Gunner Reed scored a game-high 21 points, sophomore Kyle Sternberg turned in a career-high 17, and the Buena Vista University basketball team rolled to a 97-55 victory over Faith Baptist Bible College on Tuesday night in the season opener.

Reed made 9-of-13 field goal attempts with Sternberg connecting on 6-of-8. The duo combined to go 5-of-8 from long range as the Beavers went 10-of-27 from downtown overall. Sophomore Carter Sievers chipped in with 15 points and a team-leading eight rebounds with fifth-year Zane Neubaum adding 14 points. Sternberg also grabbed seven rebounds along with junior Jackson Jones with Sternberg dishing out a team-high five assists.

Senior Blake Butvidas turned in a career-high nine points off the bench as BVU scored 41 bench point overall.

BVU shot 52.8 percent from the field in each half and made 11-of-16 from the free-throw line. Faith Baptist shot 37 percent in the first half before heating up in the second at 58 percent. BVU did hold the Eagles to just 3-of-15 from downtown.

Faith Baptist, which dropped to 2-1 overall, kept things close in the opening minutes with BVU clinging to a 12-7 lead at the 12:37 mark before a dunk from Gabe Peterson helped spark an 11-2 run over the next two minutes that was capped by three-pointer from Reed. Butvidas later hit a long range trey that put the Beavers up by 20 for the first time at 38-18. Daniel and Sievers also made three point shots which led to a 50-24 halftime cushion.

A layup from Neubaum put the Beavers up 64-34 five minutes into the second half and BVU maintained the 30-point advantage the rest of the way. The team's largest lead of the night came at 97-53 with under two minutes remaining.

Buena Vista (1-0) will now go on the road and travel to Carleton College on Friday, Nov. 15 for a 7 p.m. tip-off.