Jan. 21, 2010

Box Score

Men's Basketball: Lewis 74, Missouri S&T 69 in PDF Format

Rolla, Mo. - Lewis University sophomore guard Chris McClellan (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Wheeling) posted a career-high 26 points on 9-for-14 shooting to propel the Flyers to their third-straight win with the 74-69 Great Lakes Valley Conference road victory over Missouri S&T at the Multi-Purpose Building on Thursday (Jan. 21) night.

"Chris McClellan made some huge plays for us tonight," Lewis head men's basketball coach Scott Trost said.

Thursday's win marked the seventh-consecutive game for the Flyers that was decided by six points or less.

"It wasn't a pretty win, but it was a road win and I'll never apologize for that," Trost said. "Every one of our games has been close this season. We could be 18-0 or even 7-11. We're going to have fight in every game we have, and I thought we did that down the stretch tonight."

Lewis junior guard Donald Rowe (Kansas City, Kan./Wyandotte/Independence C.C.) posted 17 points in the win, while freshman guard David Bryant (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) came off the bench to score 10 points for the Flyers.

With the win, Lewis improves to 12-6 on the season and 4-5 in GLVC action, while the host Miners fall to 5-13 overall and 1-9 in conference play.

Missouri S&T freshman guard Bryce Foster topped the Miners with 19 points, followed by 14 tallies from senior guard A.J. Mandani and 13 points from Byron Bundy.

Once again, the Flyers enjoyed a decided advantage from the free throw line against Missouri S&T, as Lewis knocked down 22-of-29 from the charity stripe, while the host Miners managed a paltry 3-of-4 from the line.

"I thought we were more aggressive than them offensively," Trost said. "We'd take the ball to the basket and get fouled and they'd settle for jump shots, and (Missouri S&T) hit some big three's down the stretch."

Foster was the catalyst for the Miners, as he knocked down five trifectas on the evening, including three in the second-half. His last three-pointer came with 6:32 left in the contest to give Missouri S&T a 63-61 lead.

Lewis answered with an 8-0 run, highlighted by a three-point play from Bryant, to put the Flyers ahead 69-63 with 3:02 left in the game.

The Miners responded with a pair of buckets that drew them to within two points at 69-67 with 48 seconds left, following a Foster lay-up. McClellan would score on the next possession, extending Lewis' lead to 71-67 with 37 seconds remaining. On the next play, Foster missed a three-pointer and Lewis sophomore center Marty Strus (Hickory Hills, Ill./Stagg) grabbed the rebound.

Forced to foul, Missouri S&T sent Strus (9 points) to the line, and the Hickory Hills, Ill., native knocked down both of his free throw attempts to put the game away for the Flyers. Strus was 7-for-10 from the free throw line on Thursday.

Lewis returns to action on Saturday (Jan. 23) afternoon, as the Flyers head to Springfield, Missouri to square off with Drury for a 3:15 PM (CST) 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 9th 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##