ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis' men's basketball team outscored Maryville 25-2 over a 10-minute stretch in the second half to pull away for an 83-58 win on Senior Day at Neil Carey Arena. The Flyers, ranked 19th in this week's D2SIDA Media Poll and is receiving votes in the NABC Coaches Poll, improves to 19-4, 11-3 GLVC while the Saints drop to 9-15, 4-11 GLVC.
Lewis was outshot in the first 20 minutes 52 percent to 47 percent but went into the locker room with a six-point lead by turning nine Maryville turnovers into nine points and its bench outscore the Saints bench 16-3.
Maryville trimmed the lead to three on its first possession of the second half on a three-pointer by Bobby Harvey. The Flyers responded with a 7-2 run to push its lead to eight but the Saints cut it to five on a three-pointer by Dezmond McDaniel with 16:20 left to play.
Kendale McCullum (Elgin, Ill./Elgin Larkin) ignited the game deciding run with a layup on the ensuing possession and then Lewis hit 3 three-pointers in the span of less than two minutes to build a 16-point advantage. Maryville quieted the run, only momentarily, on a basket by Harvey. The Flyers countered with another 12-0 run to push the lead to 69-41 with 6:30 remaining.
Over the final 16 minutes Lewis' defense stymied the Saints holding them to just 4-of-27 shooting (14.8 percent) to build its largest lead of the game at 79-50 after a bucket by
Donovan Oliver (Kewanee, Ill./Kewanee).
The Flyers shot 61.3 percent from the floor in the second half to finish the game at 53.8 percent (35-for-65) including 10 three's. They outrebounded Maryville 41 to 26 in the contest and outscored them 40-16 in the paint.
Oliver led three Lewis players in double figures with 16 points while McCullum and
Delaney Blaylock (Wyoming, Mich./Godwin Heights) had 14 and 11 points respectively. McCullum also had a game-high 11 assists and missed a triple-double by one rebound.
The Saints entered the game as one of the top three-point shooting teams in the country at 40.2 percent but was held to 5-of-16 (31.3 percent) shooting from beyond the arc. Harvey led four Maryville players in double figures with 14 points.
The Flyers begin a four-game roadtrip to conclude the regular season on Thursday at Southern Indiana. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
