SPRINGFIELD, IL --- The University of Illinois Springfield (7-10, 1-6) closed a three-game home stand with a devastating 86-84 loss to McKendree (9-6, 2-5). Tied at the half, the game came down to the final minutes when the Bearcats were able to pull away in the final 60 seconds, before Jamall Millison hit a three at the buzzer to close the game out 86-84. Davi Austin led the charge for the Prairie Stars with a 24-point effort on an efficient 8-of-13 shooting.

In the first half, the largest lead either team was able to garner was a five point advantage by McKendree. For the entire first half, the momentum swung both ways as the two teams traded blows for the opening 20 minutes to set-up the great finish. Austin and Richard Freeman each had 11 points in the first half, combining to shoot 6-for-13 from the field and 10-of-12 from the free throw line.

Down five with a minute remaining in the half, Austin sank two free throws before Freeman went to the line and split a pair. Trailing by two in the final possession, Austin went the length of the court in the final five seconds and picked up a foul, and made both free throws to close out the half and tied the game at 40.

The second half was much like the first, as neither team could pull away from the other. Paxton Harmon tied the game with a layup and then gave UIS a three-point lead on the following possession as he hit one of his two threes on the night with 12:51 remaining.

Down 58-55, the Bearcats went on a 7-0 run to take a four-point lead before Harmon scored his seventh straight point to cut the deficit to just two. A three on the next possession from the Bearcats pushed the lead back up to a game-high seven but the Prairie Stars came firing back with a quick 7-0 run, putting them and the energetic crowd right back in it.

Two Freeman free throws preceded a three from freshman standout Zach Steinberg before the senior leader Millison tied the game with a layup. Tied at 67 with 6:21 remaining, Hall of Fame coach, Larry Statham was forced into a timeout to try and slow down the Prairie Stars.

Although UIS tied the game at 67, they were never able to regain the lead in the remaining six minutes, as the Bearcats did just enough to hold on for the victory. Hitting six of their final eight free throws, the Bearcats held off Austin's late charge, where he scored six points in the final 18 seconds of regulation.

Austin ended the night with 24 points, one shy of his career high, and two assists while Freeman tallied 17 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks. Millison and Harmon both hit double-figures, scoring 15 and 12 respectively, while Millison also led UIS with three assists.

The Prairie Stars played an incredibly clean game, turning the ball over just seven times, but were outrebounded 40-to-35, including giving up ten offensive rebounds. Though the Bearcats hit 12 threes --- six more than UIS --- the Prairie Stars shot exceptionally well from the foul stripe, hitting 24-of-29, including an 8-of-11 effort from Austin while Freeman hit 9-of-10.

UIS will look to rebound from this loss on Thursday when they travel to the University of Indianapolis for a game starting at 7:30 pm eastern time.