SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Junior JJ Cravatta (Streator, Ill.) scored a career-high 27 points and senior Dylan Sparkman (East Peoria, Ill.) added a season-high 24 points in the University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team's 81-67 win against Rockhurst Saturday evening at the Recreation and Athletic Center.

Cravatta finished 8-of-13 from the floor, 4-for-8 from three-point land and 7-for-7 from the charity stripe. It was the most points scored by a Prairie Star this season. Sparkman connected on his first six shots of the game and finished 10-for-12 from the field.

Junior Davi Austin (Newark, NJ) rounded out the Prairie Stars' double-digit scoring efforts with 10 points. He was perfect from the floor and 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Senior Kentrell King (Chicago, Ill.) posted season-highs in assists (9) and rebounds (9).

The teams went toe-to-toe in the first half with neither team able to pull away. UIS took a 23-16 lead at the 12:09 minute-mark when Cravatta made three free throws after being fouled behind the arc. The visiting Hawks battled back to take the lead after an 11-3 run over the four minutes made the score 27-26.

The Prairie Stars regained a four-point advantage late in the period after a pair of free throws from Austin, but a three-pointer from Rockhurst's Logan Souder right before the buzzer made the score 40-39 in favor of the Prairie Stars at halftime.

UIS shot 52 percent from the floor in the first half. The Hawks connected on eight long balls to stay in the game.

A layup from Rockhurst's Dominique Washington to open the second half gave the visitors a 41-40 lead, but that was the last time the Prairie Stars trailed. UIS stretched its lead to 12 with a 20-7 run over the next nine minutes. The visitors immediately responded by scoring nine straight points to cut the deficit to just three, 60-57. A jumper from sophomore Mark Weems (Chicago, Ill.) ended the run and started another UIS run to push the lead back to 12, 69-57.

The Prairie Stars converted eight of their 11 free throws attempts in the final five minutes to ice the game away and capture their fourth GLVC win of the season,

UIS is back in action next Thursday at home against Lewis.