(ST. CHARLES, Mo., Nov. 5)—The McKendree University men's basketball team is off to a 3-0 start following an 82-77 come-from-behind victory Wednesday at Lindenwood University.
Senior guard Eric Palm (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) scored 20 of his team-high 24 points in the second half as McKendree, the No. 9-ranked team in NAIA Division I, overcame a 37-34 halftime deficit. The Bearcats are now 3-0 on the year and will make their 2008-09 home debut Friday at 7 p.m. against Ohio Dominican University. The contest will be played at the Melvin Price Convocation Center.
Sophomore forward Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) chipped in with 16 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore forward Eric Hobbie (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) notched a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds before fouling out. Hobbie also registered three blocked shots. Freshman forward Sean Rakers (New Baden, IL/Wesclin) (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) came off the bench to post 11 points for McKendree.
Both teams scorched the nets in the second half as McKendree made 54.5 percent of its field goal attempts, while Lindenwood (3-1) was slightly better at 57.7 percent. The host Lions led 41-38 before Hobbie made a basket following a turnover, and Copelin scored on consecutive possessions to give McKendree the lead for good, 44-41, with 15:19 remaining. The Bearcats stretched the lead to as many as eight points before Lindenwood rallied again. The Lions came within a basket on two more occasions, the last coming at 71-69 with 3:22 on the clock.
Palm then buried a three-pointer on the Bearcats' next trip down the floor to extend the margin back to five points at the 2:37 mark. That sparked a 9-4 spurt that helped McKendree pull away down the stretch.
McKendree led for the majority of the first half, with the biggest advantage coming at 28-21 on a free throw by senior forward John Ruesler (Bridgeton, Mo./DeSmet) (Bridgeton, Mo./DeSmet) with 7:37 left in the period. Lindenwood answered with eight consecutive points to grab a 29-28 lead. The teams traded leads before the Lions reeled off the final three points of the half to take its 37-34 advantage into the locker room.
Toriano Adams scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Lindenwood. Shane Williams netted 18 points in a reserve role for the Lions.
-McK-
