ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis University's men's basketball team embarks on a three-game road trip beginning on Thursday at Quincy at 7:30 p.m. The road trip continues on Saturday when the Flyers head to Kirksville, Mo., to take on Truman State at 3 p.m. and then concludes next Monday at Illinois Springfield at 7:30 p.m.

Last Time Out – The Flyers overcame a slow start on Saturday to defeat William Jewell 76-51. The comeback was highlighted by 38-3 run by Lewis which covered the final eight minutes of the first half and the first six minutes of the second half. Artese Stapleton (Chicago, Ill./Kenwood) finished with a game-high 17 points in the contest and was joined in double figures by Dre Bell (Detroit, Mich./River Rouge) with 15 points and Adam Pischke (Cary, Ill./Marian Central Catholic) added 13 points.

A True 'Artese' – Over his last five games freshman guard Artese Stapleton (Chicago, Ill./Kenwood) is averaging 13.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.4 steals per contest. He's reached double figures in scoring in four of those games highlighted by 17 point performances against Lake Superior State, Rockhurst and William Jewell.

For Whom The Bell Tolls – Bell is averaging 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game in his last five outings. He had a 21-point and 7-rebound performance at top ranked Bellarmine on Jan. In the two wins last weekend he averaged 14 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals in the Flyers wins over Rockhurst and William Jewell. He shot 50 percent from the field and three-point line and 88 percent at the foul line in the contests. For the season he's averaging 13.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

Top 10 – Bell and Adam Pischke (Cary, Ill./Marian Central Catholic) both rank in the top in the GLVC in free throw shooting. Pischke is second in the league at nearly 90 percent while Bell is fifth at 88 percent. Anthony D'Avanzo (Harwood Heights, Ill./Notre Dame) is ranked sixth in the conference in rebounding at 7.4 per outing.

Scouting Quincy – The Hawks enter Thursday's contest with a record of 8-5 but are 2-3 in the GLVC play. Quincy improved to 7-0 at Pepsi Arena this season with wins over Maryville, 87-67 and Missouri S&T, 88-81 last weekend. Tanner Stuckman leads the Hawks and is third in the GLVC scoring with 19.8 points per game. He's joined in double figures by Charles Callier and Austin Downing with 12.5 and 12.1 points per outing respectively.

Series vs. Quincy – Thursday's matchup is the 56th meeting all-time between Lewis and Quincy with the Flyers holding a 38-17 advantage in the series. Lewis won both meetings over the Hawks last season. The Flyers won 75-63 in Romeoville and 69-67 at Quincy. Lewis has won four straight and eight of the last 10 in the series.

Scouting Truman State – The Bulldogs improved to 8-5 on the season and 4-1 in conference play after sweeping Missouri S&T, 86-60 and Maryville, 65-48 last weekend at Pershing Arena. Brodric Thomas leads Truman and is second in the GLVC in scoring at 21.2 points per game. He is joined in double figures by Cade McKnight and Hunter Strait with 12.3 and 11.1 points per outing respectively.

Series vs. Truman State – Lewis has won seven of the 10 matchups in the series against the Bulldogs including two of three last season. The Flyers picked up a 79-58 win in Kirksville in the regular season finale to secure the outright GLVC Regular Season title and then defeated Truman the following weekend in the opening round of the GLVC Tournament 72-55 in Edwardsville. The Bulldogs defeated Lewis 75-66 in Neil Carey Arena last January.

Scouting Illinois Springfield – The Prairie Stars had its two-game winning streak snapped in a 68-54 loss at home to Rockhurst last Saturday. UIS is 9-4 on the season and 2-3 in the GLVC. Daniel Soetan leads five Prairie Stars in double figures in scoring with an average of 17.6 points per game. Chase Robinson is adding 15.5 points per outing while Keymonta Johnson, Jesus Castillo and Matt Wendling are contributing 12.8, 11.8 and 11.2 points per contest.

Series vs. Illinois Springfield – Monday's contest marks the 20th meeting all-time between Lewis and Illinois Springfield with the Flyers having won 16 of the first 19 including 13 in a row. The Flyers won the first matchup this season over the Prairie Stars 71-64 back on Dec. 3.

Up Next – The Flyers return home next Thursday to take on GLVC newcomer Lindenwood with tip-off at 7:30 p.m. It'll be the start of a four-game homestand for Lewis which continues next Saturday against Missouri-St. Louis at 3 p.m. Next Saturday's contest is Alumni Day at Neil Carey Arena and the second class of the Lewis Academy of Coaches will be inducted at halftime of the men's game.