JOLIET, Ill. – Lewis' men's basketball team extended its winning streak to four with an 86-72 win at St. Francis on Thursday evening.
Anthony D'Avanzo (Harwood Heights, Ill./Notre Dame) led three Flyers in double figures with a career-high 25 points in the contest. The 86 points for Lewis were a season-high.
The Flyers (4-3) scored the first six points of the contest but then the two teams started to trade baskets over the next 10 minutes as Lewis led 28-26 with 8:06 to play in the opening half. The Flyers went on a 12-2 run over the next four minutes to build a 40-28 advantage.
The Saints (4-5) cut the deficit to seven with five quick points before Lewis closed the half on an 11-0 run to take a 51-33 lead into halftime.
The Flyers shot over 70 percent from the field in the opening half and was even better from three hitting 8-of-11 attempts (73 percent). D'Avanzo led Lewis with 10 points while
Adam Pischke (Cary, Ill./Marian Central Catholic) dropped in nine and
Dre Bell (Detroit, Mich./River Rouge) added eight.
The Flyers scored the first eight points of the second half to extend their run to 19-0 to build a 26-point lead less than two minutes into the second half. D'Avanzo hit back-to-back three's in the run while Bell added two free throws.
USF got back to within 12 at 70-58 with 8:37 remaining on a three-pointer by Carlos Tovias. That would be the closest they got as Lewis pulled away with a 14-5 run over the next five minutes to extend its lead back to 21 points.
The Flyers finished the contest shooting a season-high 56.6 percent (30-for-53) from the field, was 12-of-23 from three (52 percent) and shot 78 percent at the foul line. They outrebounded the Saints 27-to-25 and forced 19 turnovers in the contest.
D'Avanzo led all scorers in the contest and was joined in double figures by Pischke with 15 and Bell with 13.
Kam Leonard (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) led the way with five rebounds and Pischke added six assists.
The Flyers are back at home on Tuesday (Dec. 17) hosting Hillsdale at 7 p.m. at Neil Carey Arena.
