(ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Dec. 19) – The McKendree University men's basketball advances to 3-2 overall and 3-2 in GLVC contests this season after a 70-52 win over Lewis Saturday afternoon. The Bearcats split the weekend double-header 1-1 with the Flyers.

Chris Foster's team came out with hot hands looking to take the second contest of the weekend against Lewis. Back-to-back three pointers from Bryson Bultman (Nashville, IL/Nashville) in the left corner, followed by Jacob Donaldson (Effingham, IL/Effingham) in the right corner formed a 15-point cushion for the Bearcats early in the first half. McKendree established that they would be a hard team to beat, sinking 56.3 percent of their shots from three-point range and extending their lead by 20 points at the 10-minute mark. The Bearcats had an impressive first half of play, leading in rebounds (15-10) and a 58.3 shooting percentage. They would take a 20-point lead into halftime and keep the Flyers at that comfortable distance throughout the rest of the game. The Bearcats went 41.3 percent from the floor, shot 36.7 percent in three-pointers, and 91.3 percent in free throw attempts on the night.

Bryson Bultman (Nashville, IL/Nashville) matched his career-high 22 points during the contest and led the team with eight rebounds. Alijah Thomas (Des Moines, IA/Hoover) recorded a season-high 20 points, was 60.0 percent from the floor, and 87.5 percent from the free throw line. Jacob Donaldson (Effingham, IL/Effingham) went 4-for-5 in three-point attempts and 66.7 percent from field goal range, for a total 14 points.

The Flyers found themselves scrambling to crawl out of a 15-point deficit after the first five minutes of play, going only 3-of-10 from the field. Lewis had a long way to go to try and stop the Bearcats and find a groove to get their shots to drop. The Flyers started to find the right combination after two shot-clock violations from the Bearcat with five minutes left in the half, cutting their deficit to 16. The Flyers started to get more energy coming out in the second half trying to climb back into the game. The defensive intensity and rebounding intensity improved in the second half for the Flyers, while their offense continued to ship at the deficit. Though they out-rebounded the Bearcats 32-29, they could not come back enough to take the second matchup.

Lewis only had two players finish in double figures. Both Marquise Jackson and Bruno Williams each scored 11 points.

The next scheduled contest for McKendree will be a home contest on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. The Bearcats will host the University of Indianapolis at 6:00 PM in the Harry M. Statham Sports Center.