(ST. LOUIS, Mo., Jan. 2)--The McKendree University men's basketball team was defeated Friday night at Maryville University in the Great Lakes Valley Conference opener for both squads, 79-64.
 

The visiting Bearcats held a 30-29 lead at the half, but the Saints used a 17-3 run at the outset of the second half to take the lead for good. McKendree slips to 6-2 overall and will visit the University of Missouri-St. Louis for another GLVC contest Sunday at 3 p.m.
 

Sophomore guard Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) matched a career-high with 18 points to lead the way for McKendree. Senior forwards Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) (Houston, Texas/Marshall) and Arthur Williams (Cairo, IL/Cairo) (Cairo, Ill./Cairo) each posted a double-double for the Bearcats. Holmes dropped in 13 points and equaled a career-best with 15 rebounds, while Williams notched 12 points and 10 rebounds. Senior forward Logan Carson (DuQuoin, IL/DuQuoin) (DuQuoin, Ill./DuQuoin) also chipped in with 11 points for McKendree.
 

In the first half, McKendree trailed by as many as six points before using a 6-0 run to pull even at 17-17. The Bearcats eventually built a 25-22 advantage on a 5-0 run as Holmes scored on a lay-up, Jackson sank a pair of free throws and Holmes added another free throw with 3:22 left in the period. The two teams traded leads in the closing minutes of the half when Jackson hit two more foul shots to give the Bearcats their one-point lead at the intermission.
 

Maryville (6-4, 1-0 GLVC) opened the second half with its decisive run, which included a burst of nine straight points at the end to take a 46-33 lead with just over 15 minutes remaining. McKendree chipped away at the deficit and came within six points twice in the later stages of the game, the last coming at 54-48 on a lay-up by Holmes with 7:54 on the clock.
 

Max Mischkulnig poured in a game-high 26 points to pace Maryville, while Armon Provo added 20 points in the effort for the Saints.