VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

(LEBANON, Ill., Dec. 7)—The McKendree University men's basketball team bounced back into the win column Wednesday evening with an 84-60 victory at home against Central Christian College.
 
Senior guard Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) and junior guard Justin Blanks (Barberton, OH/Norton) each recorded a double-double to help the Bearcats end a four-game winless streak. Jackson and Blanks shared team-high scoring honors with 20 points, while Blanks grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and Jackson added 10 on the night. McKendree improves to 3-4 on the year and will continue its eight-game home stand Saturday evening against Trevecca Nazarene University. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. the Harry M. Statham Sports Center.
 
Sophomore guard Nate Michael (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Ogden) chipped in with 11 points and four assists, while freshman center Nolan Gerling (Germantown, IL/Mater Dei) netted all 10 of his points in the second half for McKendree. Junior guard Gianni Otto (Remseck, Germany/Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium) helped out with nine points and game-high totals of five assists and four steals for the Bearcats as senior forward Brian Koch (Mt. Vernon, IN/Mt. Vernon) dropped in eight points in just nine minutes of action against Central Christian.
 
The McKendree bench helped fuel Wednesday's win over Central Christian. The Bearcats' reserves held a 40-0 edge in scoring over the Saints. In addition, McKendree outscored Central Christian 42-22 in the paint and outrebounded the Saints by a 48-32 margin.
 
McKendree led for all but 17 seconds of Wednesday's contest. Central Christian grabbed its only lead of the night at 6-5 before a lay-up by Jackson at the 17:04 mark of the first half put the Bearcats in front for good at 6-5. The Bearcats' lead grew to 19-10 when Central Christian responded with a 9-2 run to pull within 21-19 midway through the period.
 
At that point, McKendree ripped off 11 consecutive points to stretch its advantage to 32-19 with 5:55 to play in the first half. Otto opened the burst with a lay-up and three-pointer, while Blanks capped the run thanks to a three-pointer from the wing. The Bearcats maintained its double-digit lead the remainder of the half and took a 38-24 advantage into the locker room.
 
In the second half, McKendree was able to extend its cushion by shooting 55.6 percent from the field (20-of-36). The Bearcats took their largest lead of the night, 84-49, thanks to a jumper in the paint by Gerling with just over four minutes remaining.
 
DuJuan Henderson poured in a game-high 27 points and added nine rebounds to lead the way for Central Christian. Jake Kiesby connected for 12 points, while Victor Dean narrowly missed his own double-double with eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds for the Saints.
 
      The win for McKendree was the fifth in as many meetings against Central Christian. It also helped the Bearcats improve to 12-2 in non-conference home games in the month of December since transitioning to NCAA Division II membership in 2012-13.