SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Aided by five players in double figures, the University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team downed crosstown rival, Robert Morris Springfield, 106-73, on Wednesday evening at The Recreation & Athletic Center.

The Prairie Stars are now 1-0 under first-year head coach Bill Walker and improve to 8-0 in home openers in TRAC.

Senior Dylan Sparkman (East Peoria, Ill.), junior JJ Cravatta (Streator, Ill.) and sophomore Mark Weems (Chicago) each recorded 16 points. Sparkman's points came primarily in the paint, while Cravatta was 5-for-12 from the floor including three long balls and a 3-for-3 outing from the line. Sparkman also dished out five assists, while grabbing down five rebounds with no turnovers. Weems went 5-for-9 from line with seven rebounds.

Freshman Vincent Walker (Ankeny, Iowa) was on fire from long range, going 4-for-5 and a 2-for-2 trip at the lin for 14 points. Sophomore Jamall Millison (Bolingbrook, Ill.) wrapped up the double-digit scorers with 12 points. Junior Davi Austin (Newark, N.J.) narrowly missed a double-double with eight points and eight assists. Austin led a plethora of players that helped out with seven other players dishing out helpers.

The Prairie Stars started off sluggish in the first half, letting the Eagles take an early seven point lead, 22-15. UIS then battled back to make it a one-point game, 36-35 on a three-pointer from Millison and held RMU Springfield scoreless for the rest of the half as the hosts completed a 14-0 run to own a 42-36 edge heading into halftime.

Illinois Springfield quickly ballooned its lead to double digits by the 16:29 mark of the second half, 52-42 and eventually led by as many as 33. The Prairie Stars shot an outstanding 65 percent in the second half, going 21-for-32 from the floor with eight treys.

Off the glass, the Prairie Stars owned a 42-30 edge which led to 15 second-chance points. Junior Sammie Elem (Chicago) and Weems grabbed seven boards, while junior Dusko Despot (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) grabbled up six. UIS also capitalized on the Eagles' 13 turnovers to set down 17 points. As a team, UIS shot a 55 percent clip (35-63) and hit 12 triples.

For the Eagles, Robert Calmese tallied a game-high 31 points going 8-for-16 from the floor and 12-for-13 from the line. Teammate David Reid recorded 18 points and a team-best seven boards.

The Prairie Stars now begin a three-game road swing that takes them to Nashville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 22. UIS takes on Trevecca Nazarene at 3 p.m. UIS then quickly turns around to face off with Lincoln University in Missouri on Monday, Nov. 24.