Javonte Perkins scored 16 of his team-high 20 points in the second half Thursday night as host Saint Louis caught and passed North Carolina State for an 80-69 nonconference men's basketball victory in a battle of unbeaten teams.

Jordan Goodwin chipped in 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds for the Billikens (6-0), with 11 of the points coming in the second period as the hosts erased a 35-29 halftime deficit.

Manny Bates paced North Carolina State (3-1) with a game-high-tying 20 points.

The Wolfpack led by as many as 10 in the first half and were still up 55-48 with 11:18 to play before Saint Louis, which has not played a road game this season, dominated the rest of the game.

Perkins broke a 58-all tie with a pair of free throws with 7:03 to go, and Demarius Jacobs bombed in a 3-pointer as the Billikens went on to lead by as many as 15.

Perkins later buried his only 3-pointer of the game to contribute to the runaway.

Yuri Collins had 17 points and Gibson Jimerson 12 for Saint Louis, while Hasahn French added 13 rebounds to the host's 53-26 dominance on the boards.

Nine of Jimerson's 12 points came on 3-pointers in a game that featured only nine of them, five of which were recorded by Saint Louis.

Devon Daniels finished with 15 points and Braxton Beverly 13 for North Carolina State, whose three earlier wins had come by an average of 33.3 points against Charleston Southern, North Florida and Massachusetts-Lowell.

The Billikens outshot the Wolfpack 45.6 percent to 37.9 percent to overcome 21 turnovers.

Bates and Daniels had 10 points apiece in the first half, during which the Wolfpack led by at least nine on three occasions en route to a 35-29 advantage at the break.

The North Carolina State defense dominated the first 20 minutes, forcing 13 Saint Louis turnovers and harassing the Billikens into just 31 percent shooting.

Collins had 11 of his 17 points in the half for Saint Louis.

--Field Level Media