BARTLESVILLE - With three players scoring in double figures, St. Gregory's launched its 2004-05 basketball season with a 70-53 victory over Oklahoma Wesleyan Tuesday night.
J.R. Rogers led the Cavaliers in scoring with 18 points and added 10 rebounds.
Also in double figures for SGU were Patrick Jones with 14 points and Ernie Anderson with 12. Anderson also added six rebounds in a 25-minute stint.
Jones is the only returning Cavalier starter.
Shawnee product Luke Simpson was also an integral part of the win with nine points and six rebounds in 16 minutes.
"Luke really had a good game," said SGU coach Kevin Morrissey. "For our first game, we played fairly well but we have a lot to work on. Ernie did a good job for us and so did J.R."
The Cavaliers led just 23-19 at the half, then spread the advantage to 35-22 with 15 minutes to play. Wesleyan cut the deficit to 51-49 with eight minutes left, only to have the Cavaliers go on another run.
Brett McGee, a 6-foot-6 transfer from Vanguard University in Calif., added eight points while 6-8 Cav Alex Mansour chipped in with seven points.
Point guard Noah Zuhdi had just two points but claimed eight rebounds.
For Wesleyan, Austin Johnson had 20 points and teammate Matt Conboy finished with 15.
St. Gregory's players shot 39.1 percent from the field, while Wesleyan managed 34.5 percent. The Cavaliers finished with a 52-36 advantage in total rebounds.
The Cavaliers will open their home campaign Tuesday night at 7 against Central Bible College.