Feb. 11, 2010

Box Score

Men's Basketball: Lewis 63, UW-Parkside 58 in PDF Format

Somers, Wis. - Lewis University head men's basketball coach Scott Trost has often said that his squad needed to hang its hat on their defensive performance.

Such was the case on Thursday (Feb. 11) night, as the Flyers held UW-Parkside scoreless over the last 3:55 of the second half and forced three turnovers over the final two minutes to secure the 63-58 Great Lakes Valley Conference victory over the host Rangers at DeSimone Gymnasium.

"We didn't play well, but we made some plays down the stretch and found a way to win on the road," Trost said.

UW-Parkside had a hard time finding the bottom of the net, as the Rangers shot a meager 34.4% (21-for-61) from the field, while Lewis converted 48.1% (26-for-54) of their attempts.

Sophomore guard Chris McClellan (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Wheeling) led four Flyers in double-figures with 13 points. McClellan's backcourt mate Dennis Thomas, Jr. (Milwaukee, Wis./Bradley Tech) chipped in 11 points, while freshman guard David Bryant (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) posted 10 points off the bench.

Sophomore forward Matt Toth (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) garnered a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds, while classmate Marty Strus (Hickory Hills, Ill./Stagg) added a game-high 13 rebounds for the Flyers.

With the victory, Lewis improves to 15-9 overall and 7-8 in conference action, while UW-Parkside falls to 8-16 on the season and 3-12 in GLVC play.

UW-Parkside forward Kevin Senechalle and Jeremy Saffold each scored 10 points for the Rangers in the loss.

The Flyers, who led by as many as 12 points in the second half, could never quite put UWP away, as the Rangers continually chipped away at the deficit. UWP finally took a 58-57 lead over the visiting Flyers following a Sam Katula (9 points) lay-up with 3:55 left in regulation.

The lead would be brief, as on the ensuing possession, Bryant drained a trifecta to spur the Flyers to a 6-0 run over the last 3:20 of the game to clinch the win for Lewis.

"That was a huge `3'," Trost said. "He just doesn't get rattled out there and he has shown tremendous poise for a freshman this entire season."

Lewis returns to action on Saturday (Feb. 13) afternoon, as the Flyers head to Indiana to square off with Saint Joseph's for a 3 PM 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##