Benedictine (20-6, 9-3 NIIC) reached 20 wins in back-to-back years for just the second time in school history; the Eagles first accomplished the feat in the 1975-76 and 1976-77 seasons. The 20-win campaign is the eighth in school history, and the third in head coach Keith Bunkenburg's 10-year tenure. Eureka (6-20, 2-10 NIIC), which finished the season in a three-way tie for fifth in the NIIC standings, ended the year on a six-game losing streak.
Benedictine started slowly on the offensive end, but made up for it at the defensive end, forcing Eureka to miss 15 of its first 16 shots from the field. The Eagles were sparked by the play of its reserves, who went on a 9-1 run that spanned less than three minutes to stake Benedictine to a 17-3 lead just more than 10 minutes into the game. Mike Shimkus scored the last five points of that run on a fastbreak lay-up and a 3-pointer.
After AJ Richard got the visitors to within 11 (21-10) on a jumper with 6:24 left in the first half, Benedictine put the game away with a 17-0 run over the next three-plus minutes. The run included six points from Marcus Jackson and four each from Brice Amelianovich and Zach Ramey. The Eagles went into the locker room with a 45-15 advantage, its largest halftime lead of the season; the 15 points matched an opponent season low in the first half.
Jackson scored six points in the first five-plus minutes of the second half, and Shimkus pushed Benedictine's advantage to 67-25 with treys on back-to-back possessions. The hosts led by at least 40 points for the final 10:47 of the game.
Jackson had 14 points, two blocks and four steals in just 19 minutes of work, while Amelianovich tied for game honors with 14 points of his own (12 in the first half) on 6-of-8 shooting. Shimkus added a career-best 11 points off the bench to go along with four steals. Benedictine's reserves combined for 50 points (compared to the starters' 37), which included a career-best effort from Nick LoGalbo, who scored a career-high eight points after knocking down a pair of treys.
Clint Rabbe scored eight points to pace Eureka. The Red Devils were forced into 16 percent (5-32) shooting in the first 20 minutes of the game and committed 24 turnovers on the night.
Benedictine advanced to the NIIC Tournament Semifinals for the third time in as many years. The Eagles will host third-seeded Clarke College on Thursday, Feb. 24, at 7:30 p.m. Benedictine won a pair of hotly contested match-ups with the Crusaders this season, including a 65-64 overtime affair in the teams' second meeting.