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Romeoville, Ill. - For the second time this season against McKendree, the Lewis University men's basketball team used a strong second-half showing to surge past the Bearcats and earn the 76-56 Great Lakes Valley Conference victory at Neil Carey Arena on Saturday (Feb. 16) night.

Lewis shot 58.6% (17-for-29) from the field in the final 20 minutes and held McKendree to 22 points on 7-for-29 shooting, outscoring them 46-22 in the final stanza. In their previous meeting, Lewis rebounded from a nine-point, first-half deficit by shooting 72.0% (18-for-25) from the field and outscoring McKendree 45-23 in the second half.

Lewis sophomore guard Ryan Jackson (Bolingbrook, Ill./Riverside-Brookfield) (Bolingbrook, Ill./Riverside-Brookfield) led the Flyers with 19 points, while sophomore center Kyle Nelson (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) tied a season-high with 18 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field. The Flyers also received 11 points and a game-high four assists from senior guard David Bryant (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) (Batavia, Ill./Batavia).

With the win, Lewis improves to 15-8 on the campaign and 9-6 in GLVC action, while the visiting Bearcats drop to 7-18 on the season and 1-14 in conference play.

McKendree senior guard John Steppe posted a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds on 8-for-16 shooting, including a game-high four assists for the Bearcats. Bearcat guard Clinton Happe added 13 points, while Brandon Drum came off the bench to score 10.

Primarily a three-point shooting team, McKendree held a 34-30 lead over the Flyers at halftime, as the Bearcats knocked down six trifectas in the opening 20 minutes.

That lead quickly evaporated, as Lewis held McKendree without a field goal for nearly the first seven minutes of the second half. During that stretch, Lewis went on a 20-3 run, led by seven points from sophomore guard Jeff Jarosz (Lyons, Ill./Morton) (Lyons, Ill./Morton), to take a 50-37 lead with 13:27 remaining and the Flyers never looked back.

"We didn't play hard enough and with enough energy in the first half," Lewis head men's basketball coach Scott Trost said. "Give our guys credit though. We responded in a positive way, but now we have to find a way to play for 40 minutes."

Nelson keyed the Flyer frontcourt to a 44-12 advantage over McKendree in points in the paint. The Flyers were also aided by a season-low six turnovers, which was the fewest by a Lewis team since they had three miscues against St. Francis (Ill.) on December 11, 2010.

Lewis returns to action on Thursday (Feb. 21), as the Flyers welcome No. 12 Indianapolis to Neil Carey Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:45 PM.