(SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Feb. 9)—The McKendree University men’s basketball team suffered its first American Midwest Conference loss of the season with a 72-65 loss Saturday at the University of Illinois at Springfield.

 

The Bearcats, ranked No. 12 in NAIA Division I, saw a six-point halftime lead disappear by shooting just 28.6 percent from the field in the second half. Illinois-Springfield, the pre-season favorite to win the AMC regular-season title, used an 18-4 run early in the second half to pick up the victory. McKendree had its nine-game win streak snapped with the loss. The Bearcats are now 19-5 overall and 9-1 in AMC play. The Prairie Stars improve to 17-8 on the year and 7-2 in league play.

 

McKendree, which entered the game leading all NAIA Division I programs in three-point field goal percentage at just under 46 percent, made just 3-of-22 shots from beyond the arc in the contest.

 

Junior guard Eric Palm (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) led McKendree with 22 points, including 16 in the second half. Freshman forward Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O’Fallon, Ill./O’Fallon) added a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while sophomore forward Ken Detmer (Aviston, Ill./Breese Central) chipped in with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

 

McKendree led 32-26 at the half and held a 38-30 advantage when Illinois-Springfield went on its decisive run. Jacob Motteler scored 10 of his 17 points during the stretch for the Prairie Stars, including a pair of free throws with 11:04 remaining to push the Prairie Stars lead to 48-42. The Bearcats battled back and took their final lead of the day, 49-48, on a pair of foul shots by Palm with 9:03 left.

 

Illinois-Springfield then used a 9-2 spurt to grab the lead for good. McKendree rallied in the closing minutes, pulling to within 65-62 on a pair of free throws by freshman forward Eric Hobbie (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) with 2:27 on the clock. But the Prairie Stars held on down the stretch, scoring their final seven points of the contest from the stripe.

 

Ralph Woodson led Illinois-Springfield with 23 points and seven rebounds. Motteler finished with 17 points while Lonell Reeves scored all 12 of his points in the second half off the bench for the Prairie Stars.

 

McKendree will return to action Thursday with an AMC contest at Missouri Baptist University. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.