Men's Basketball put together a complete effort to kick-start the 2021 portion of their schedule.

The (RV) Ravens took down the Missouri Valley College Vikings 89-75 at home in a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicates.

After leading by 16 at halftime and 15 with 15:38 left to play, the Ravens turned on the juice and put the Vikings away for good. First, Matt Austin scored on an assist from Jaiden Bristol, then Joel Adese got a bucket in the paint. Moments later, Braden Belt knocked down a 3-pointer, then the Ravens forced a loose ball at half court. Tyson Cathy and Nysir Scott each dove for the ball, with Scott getting control and passing to Austin. Scott popped back up, darted towards the lane, caught the pass from Austin and scored, was fouled and hit the free throw to cap off a 10-0 Ravens run.

The lead grew to as many as 34 points in the second before the Vikings trimmed the deficit against the Ravens reserves.

The Ravens (9-3 overall, 5-2 Heart) took a 48-32 halftime lead behind solid ball movement. The Ravens had 10 assists on 16 made baskets in the first half, freeing up players inside and out. Eric Krus (15 points), Chris Jackson (12) and Austin (9) each knocked down a pair of 3-pointers in the first half. Bristol and Scott also had buckets by driving into the paint.

The ball movement continued in the second half as the Ravens added nine more assists. Five players finished in double-digits, led by Jackson's 23. Krus added 17 in 15 minutes of action, Austin and Belt each had 11 and Scott scored 10. Bristol had 10 assists and seven rebounds.

The Ravens, who have the fourth-most voting points of teams outside the NAIA Coaches' Poll, shot 50.8% from the field and 40.6% from 3-point range.

They'll try to continue the hot shooting when they take on Central Methodist University at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 9 back at home.

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