LEBANON, Ill. -- The Lewis University men's basketball team rallied from down 14 with 10 minutes left to defeat McKendree, 87-81, at Harry M. Statham Sports Center Thursday (Feb. 29). 

TEAM RECORDS
Lewis 16-11, 12-7 GLVC | McKendree 15-11, 9-10 GLVC

LEWIS LEADERS
Points: Rob Stroud (Danville, Ill.) (16), Anthony Sayles Jr. (Evanston, Ill./Notre Dame Prep) (14), Beau Frericks (Cary, Ill./Cary Grove) (14), Gary Solomon (Eastpointe, Mich.) (13), Paxton Warden (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) (10), Jamere Hill (Joliet, Ill./Joliet West) (10)
Rebounds: Cem Kirciman (Bursa, Turkey/Wisconsin-Green Bay) (6), Warden (6)
Assists: Warden (6)
Steals: Sayles (3)
Blocks: Hill (1), Stroud (1)

SUMMARY
Solomon started the game with a dunk, then McKendree scored the next six points to go ahead 6-2. Frericks responded with a bucket before the Bearcats hit a jumper and a three for an 11-4 lead.

Lewis bounced back and scored eight straight points with threes from Frericks and Sayles as well as a layup from Kirciman to make it 13-11. McKendree went on to score the next eight points to give it a 19-13 lead. Hill ended the Lewis drought with a bucket looking to get back in the contest. 

McKendree went up 24-17 with 8:15 left before the break, but then Lewis scored three straight baskets to tie the game right back at 24-24. The Bearcats went on another run, this time 9-1, which gave them a 33-25 lead.

Stroud knocked down a three-pointer late in the first half looking to get Lewis momentum into the break. MCK led 43-35 at halftime.

Warden opened up the second half with a three-pointer to make it a five-point game (43-38). McKendree responded with seven straight for a 50-38 lead. 

The Bearcats held onto a lead for a while as McKendree had a 65-51 advantage with under 11 minutes to play. Lewis mounted a comeback, scoring 11 points in a row over the next three minutes to cut it to three (65-62) with under eight minutes to play.

Moments later, Solomon gave Lewis a 70-69 lead with 6:06 play in the contest after making a driving layup. McKendree regained the lead for a short while before Frericks knocked down a triple for a 73-71 Lewis lead.

Lewis got back-to-back threes from Warden and Sayles to grab a seven-point lead (81-74), its biggest of the night. The Flyers used clutch free throw shooting down the stretch, making its last four from the stripe, to win the game 87-81.

UP NEXT
Lewis men's basketball wraps up its regular season Saturday, March 2 as the Flyers travel to Missouri-St. Louis starting at 3 p.m. CT as the Flyers look to improve their conference tournament seeding and regional ranking.