ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis' men's basketball team overcame an 11-point first half deficit thanks to a second half rally to defeat Missouri S&T 67-63 on Senior Day on Saturday afternoon at Neil Carey Arena. The win was the third straight for the Flyers and improved them to 13-11, 8-8 GLVC while the Miners fall to 5-17, 3-13 GLVC.

Lewis struggled to find its rhythm in the first 20 minutes as S&T jumped out to an early lead. The Flyers got it to within four at 14-10 on a jumper from Anthony D'Avanzo (Harwood Heights, Ill./Notre Dame) with 9:07 left in the opening half.

The Miners answered with a 7-2 run over the next 1:24 to take extend its lead to 21-12 after CJ Hedgepeth hit 1-of-2 at the foul line.

Marco Pettinato (Mokena, Ill./Lincoln-Way West) provided some scoring off the bench for Lewis with seven straight points during one stretch.

S&T though wasn't missing as it extended its lead to 31-20 with 1:10 left in the opening half on a jumper from Hedgepeth.

Austin Boucher (Markle, Ind./Fort Wayne North Side) and Dulan Scott traded three's before Dre Bell (Detroit, Mich./River Rouge) hit a jumper in the closing seconds of the half to cut the Miner lead to 34-25 at the half.

The Flyers opened the second half on a 13-3 run over the first four-plus minutes to take its first lead of the contest on a three-pointer by Bell.

The lead changed hands several times over the next 11:30 minutes before Bell's three put Lewis ahead for good at 61-59 with 4:09 to play.

S&T had a chance to tie the score with 61 seconds left but Dawson Berry hit 1-of-2 at the line and then on the other end D'Avanzo hit a layup to put the Flyers up 65-62 with 0:46 remaining.

The Miners had a chance to cut the lead to one on the ensuing possession but Hedgepeth made 1-of-2 at the line and then Adam Pischke (Cary, Ill./Marian Central Catholic) sealed the victory hitting a jumper in the closing seconds to put Lewis up 67-63.

Yahmir Muhammad fired up a desperation three that went out of bounds giving the ball back to the Flyers.

Lewis shot over 43 percent from the floor but was only 6-of-20 from three and shot 68 percent at the foul line. Bell led all scorers with a career-high 24 points, 15 in the second half, and was joined in double figures D'Avanzo with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Pischke and Pettinato added nine points apiece.

S&T shot nearly 40 percent from the field, was 7-of-18 from three but shot 56 percent from the foul line. Scott led the Miners with 21 points while Hedgepeth finished with 13 points.

The Flyers conclude their three-game homestand on Thursday (Feb. 20) hosting McKendree at 7:30 p.m.