SPRINGFIELD, IL - Freshman Bahari Amaya (Harrisburg, Ill.) scored a career-high 23 points to lead the University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team to a 101-52 win against Robert Morris Springfield Wednesday night at the Recreation and Athletic Center.

Amaya scored just three points in his first two games as a Prairie Star but exploded onto the scene Wednesday, shooting 8-for-13 from the field and 4-for-8 from three-point land. The Harrisburg native led four Prairie Stars in double figures. Fellow freshman Zach Steinberg (Wildwood, Mo.) put together a career night of his own, posting a double-double of 17 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Junior-transfer Richard Freeman (Indianapolis, Ind.) finished with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting and redshirt freshman Vince Walker (Ankeny, Iowa) added 14.

It was slow going in the first couple minutes of the game. Robert Morris Springfield took a 4-1 lead after a bucket from Randel Griggs at the 16:27 minute-mark. UIS started the game 0-for-8 from the floor. Amaya ended the drought for the home team with a three pointer to tie the game, 6-6, with 14:44 left in the half.

That bucket started a 14-0 run for the Prairie Stars that broke the game wide open. UIS took a 14 point lead, 20-6, after a jumper from Freeman and never looked back, eventually extending the lead to as many as 31 in the first period. The Prairie Stars shot 48 percent from the field in the first half and took a 48-17 lead into halftime.

UIS increased its advantage in the second half to as many as 56 points. The Prairie Stars shot 58.8 percent in the final period and nearly everyone got in on the act. Nine players scored at least two points led by Amaya and Freeman with 10 a-piece. Senior Davi Austin (Newark, N.J.), the team's leading scorer through the first two games of the season, played only 20 minutes but brought the crowd to its feet with a pair of dunks, one in the first half and one in the second. Just two minutes into the second period, Austin collected a lob pass from Zach Steinberg and threw it down. He converted a free throw for the traditional three-point play.

The Prairie Stars' hot shooting helped the hosts cruise to a 101-52 win. UIS is back in action on Tuesday, Nov. 24 at home against Lindenwood.