ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - The men's basketball team pulled away early in the second half against Tiffin at the GLVC/G-MAC Crossover on Friday, November 8th, at the Neil Carey Arena in Romeoville, Illinois. 

Score: McKendree University 69, Tiffin University 45 

Record: Bearcats 1-0, 0-0 GLVC | Dragons 0-1, 0-0 G-MAC 

HOW IT HAPPENED

It was a bit of a slow start for McKendree, as Tiffin came out of the gates determined, sinking a three-pointer by junior forward Caleb Bates as fellow teammate, senior forward Dekyre Fuller, drove one inside a minute after to start up 5-0. The Bearcats finally got on the board after three straight free throws from junior forward Noah Franklin Cobden, Ill.), but would be answered but a hot Dragon offense who had sophomore guard Michael Lucarotti and junior forward Jacob Pleiman connect on a pair of threes to up their lead to four. 

McKendree would finally get their first lead of the game after a three-point shot from senior guard Joey Niesman (Oswego, Ill.), and would be followed by a ferocious slam dunk from Franklin to lead 18-15. Tiffin would get a couple more buckets in in the final few minutes of the half, but the Bearcats rallied off a 7-0 run after Franklin stayed hot, this time from beyond the arc as well as senior guard Kevin Stein (Chester, N.Y.) took it inside for a layup to put his team up at halftime 25-19. 

Stein and Franklin would be a two-man show for the Bearcats coming out of halftime, with both combining for their team's first 12 points in the first seven minutes within as the former had eight of them.  A trio of threes from senior guard Destin Whitaker (Romeoville, Ill.) increased the McKendree lead to 24, giving the opposition a narrow chance for a comeback in the final seven minutes of regulation.  

The remaining time in regulation was tight between both sides, as Pleiman sunk in a three with 12 seconds remaining, but it was far too late for the Dragons, as McKendree would pick up their first win of the season 69-45. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Franklin and Stein led the way for McKendree, each notching 17 and 16 points respectively while the latter of the two dished out four assists. 

• Niesman and Whitaker were the x-factors in the Bearcats' win with each contributing 11 points and seven rebounds while Whitaker was a solid 3-8 from beyond the arc. 

• Bates led Tiffin in scoring with 11 points with a steal and going 1-3 from deep. Lucarotti was not too far behind with 8 points. 

• McKendree shot 39.7% from the field, 27.3% from distance, and 85.0% from the stripe while the Dragons ended with 27.5%, 22.2%, and 68.4% respectively. 

• The Bearcats held the Dragons to zero second-chance points to their eight on the win. 

• McKendree won the battle in the paint, outscoring Tiffin 26-16. 

UP NEXT

McKendree will be back on the court tomorrow on Saturday, November 9th when they face Malone University on day two of the GLVC/G-MAC Crossover at 1:00 PM CT. 

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