Nov. 24, 2009

Box Score

Men's Basketball: Lewis 77, Hillsdale 63 in PDF Format

Romeoville, Ill. - Lewis University junior guard Dennis Thomas (Milwaukee, Wis./Bradley Tech) torched Hillsdale for a game-high 29 points, including a career-high six trifectas, to help the host Flyers rally from an early second-half deficit on their way to the 77-63 non-conference victory over the Chargers on Tuesday (Nov. 24) night.

"Dennis probably played his best game since he's been here tonight," Lewis head men's basketball coach Scott Trost said. "He's got a bounce in his step, he's hard to guard and he's shooting with confidence."

Freshman guard David Bryant (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) added 17 points, including three treys, while point guard Chris McClellan (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Wheeling) added 11 points in the win.

With the victory, Lewis improves to 3-1 on the campaign, while the Chargers remain winless at 0-4.

The first half proved to be a three-point shooting contest for both teams as Lewis and Hillsdale combined for 13 total trifectas in the opening 20 minutes, as the Chargers took a 35-34 lead heading into the intermission.

Hillsdale extended their lead to four points at 46-42 with 15:56 left in the second half following a Luke Laser (10 points) jumper.

That's when the Flyers took control over the game, as they went on a 28-6 run, led by a combined 15 points from both Thomas (8 points) and Bryant (7 points) and never looked back.

For the game, Lewis shot over 50.0% for the third-straight game, as they knocked down 52.1% (25-for-48) of their attempts, including a season-best 61.1% (11-for-18) from three-point range.

"I thought the kids played sluggish in the first half," Trost said. "In the second half, I thought we played very well with a lot of energy. This was a good, solid win against a team that could be in the mix come tournament time."

Hillsdale guard Brent Eaton topped the Chargers with 13 points, while Nick Washburn added 10 points in defeat.

Lewis returns to action on Saturday (Nov. 28), as they head to Joliet to square off with rival, St. Francis (Ill.) for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off.

A Catholic university sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The 10th largest private, not-for-profit university in Illinois is being honored for the sixth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu.

##LEWIS##