SPRINGFIELD, IL – The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) men's basketball team cruised to an 87-51 victory over Lincoln Christian University on Monday.
 
"I thought that our unselfishness and ball movement was as good as I've seen in my three and a half years here," UIS coach Bill Walker said. "A lot of times in games like this right before Christmas when you've got a big lead, the tendency is to get your average but I was happy with our offensive ball movement and semi-happy with our defensive intensity."
 
UIS (9-3) topped the Division II school record, tallying 28 assists for the game.
 
"It's hard to do, but it's a tribute to our guys and the direction our team is going."
 
The Prairie Stars are off to their best 12-game start since becoming a Division II program. UIS has won nine of its last 10 games.
 
UIS led Lincoln Christian (4-10) by a score of 49-20 at halftime. The Prairie Stars outscored the Red Lions 38-31 in the second half.
 
Eddie Longmeyer contributed a double-double with game-highs 20 points and 10 rebounds. The 6-foot-3 senior guard from St. Louis, MO drained 9-of-12 (75 percent) shots from the field.
 
"Eddie has done two things to make him a better player. First, is that his work ethic in practice has allowed him to be in better shape and play hard for the whole time he is in the game. Second, he's really concentrated on being a good rebounder and he's doing a good job on both ends."
 
Brandon Van Sant produced 11 points and eight rebounds.
 
"Brandon is a key for us. He is pretty diverse scorer in the post and he can shoot threes. I think there were a couple of times that he was late reacting, defensively. He's a good enough athlete where he can put his elbow over the rim and block shots but he was a little slow getting there."
 
Gilwan Nelson recorded 10 points and two blocks. Vince Walker tallied nine points and five assists.
 
CJ Payawal scored seven points.
 
"CJ is one of those guys who is on the fringe of our rotation. He's kind of a versatile guy that can play as a two, three or four. He may be a key. I tell the guys that you never know how the season's going to unfold. He might be a guy that can help us win a conference game and [conference games] are all that's left."
 
Collin Stallworth and Lijah Donnelly each added seven points. Zach Steinberg notched six points, Aundrae Williams provided five points, Kaj Days and Chidiebere Ngwe slated two points apiece while Wayde Smith rounded out the UIS scoring effort with one point. Donnelly and Logan Gonce each dished out four assists.
 
Cornelius Lawhorn tallied team-highs of 11 points and six rebounds for the Red Lions. Kamrein Street also matched Lawhorn's six boards.
 
UIS outscored Lincoln Christian 19-4 in points off turnovers and 14-3 on fast-break points. The Prairie Stars beat the Red Lions on the glass, finishing with 54-to-35 advantage on the boards.
 
UIS knocked down 34-of-73 (46.6 percent) shots from the field and 10-of-25 (40 percent) attempts from 3-point range. Lincoln Christian hit 18-of-59 (30.5 percent) attempts from the field and 7-of-32 (21.9 percent) shots from downtown.
 
The Prairie Stars drained 9-of-14 (64.3 percent) shots from the free-throw line while the Red Lions made 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) attempts from the charity stripe.
 
"I'm looking forward to this Christmas Break, but we've also been playing very well, so I hate to take a break in the middle of it."
 
UIS holds a 1-1 in conference play. The Prairie Stars return to action on Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. with a Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) matchup against Lewis University (4-7, 1-2) at Romeoville, IL. UIS then takes on McKendree University (8-2, 1-1) on Jan. 6 at 3 p.m. in Lebanon, IL.

UIS GAME NOTES

Walker ranks second in UIS Division II history with 124 career 3-point field goals. Steinberg moved to sixth in UIS Division II history in career field goals made (230). Among UIS Division II career leaders, Longmeyer ranks eighth in points (585), eighth in free throws made (122) and ninth in rebounds (239). Donnelly is also tied for ninth in UIS Division II history in career assists (105).