Springfield, Ill - The Lewis University men's basketball team fell on the road today against University of Illinois Springfield 58-63.

IMPACT PLAYERS

For the Flyers, Cale Cosme (Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice) (??Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice) and Ryan Hall (Kettering, Ohio/Kettering Fairmont) (Kettering, Ohio Kettering Fairmont) were the only players to score double digits, with both scoring 19 and 18 points respectively. Cosme's 19 points, the team high in scoring, came from 50% from the field on 8-16 shots. He also led the team in rebounds, assists and steals with six, six and three respectively.

For UIS, Britton Dutton led in scoring with 15 points, Alex Stell led in rebounds with 11, and Jordan Rice contributed the most assists of the night with eight.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Flyers quickly opened the scoreboard with two successful free throws by Ryan Hall (Kettering, Ohio/Kettering Fairmont) less than a minute into the game, but that lead didn't last for long, as a jumper by UIS' Tye Banks brought the game to a tie. This moment marked the start of UIS' first half dominance, as they managed to keep the lead through the end of the first half. The hosts were keeping their distance from the Flyers in the scoreboard for as much as 15 points through the first 20 minutes of basketball.

Coming back from halftime break, the Flyers managed to turn their offensive efforts around, outscoring the hosts 34-25. Through the first 12 and a half minutes, the Flyers managed to tie the game after a successful three-point attempt from Cosme brought the score to 51-51 with seven minutes to go. 

A free throw by Cosme at the 5:10 mark saw the Flyers get their second lead of the night. Cosme continued to push in offense by scoring two layups in under 30 seconds that brought the Flyers' lead to 58-53, their largest lead of the night. Unfortunately, Lewis' hopes were quickly taken away by the hosts, as they managed to retake the lead with 2:48 to go. Lewis couldn't manage to secure the victory and they lost to a final score of 58-63. With this loss, the Flyers' record falls to 4-21.

UP NEXT 

The Lewis University men's basketball team will make the trip to Indiana this upcoming Saturday (Feb. 21) to play University of Indianapolis, with tip-off time set for 2:30 p.m.

For the latest news and updates on Lewis men's basketball, visit LewisFlyers.com and follow the Flyers on social media at @lewisflyersmbb on Instagram and @LewisMBBall on X.