FRANKFORT, KY --- The Prairie Stars (7-3) bounced back after a tough loss on Thursday night with an 81-69 road win over Kentucky State (3-8). Gilwan Nelson led the charge for the Prairie Stars with 22 points, which is a season-high for the transfer forward. All nine Prairie Stars that recorded playing time scored, leading to a balanced offensive attack in the road win.

UIS started slow, as the Thorobreds jumped out to an 11-0 lead, holding UIS scoreless for the first 4:26 of the game. As a team, UIS missed their first seven shots from the field and committed two turnovers in that stretch.

"We got off to a slow start due to Kentucky State's athleticism and ability to get to the rim," said assistant coach Austin McBeth, "but once we stopped settling for jump shots and got to the basket on our end, I think we settled into a rhythm."

A layup from Eddie Longmeyer halted the run for the Thorobreds and the two teams traded baskets until UIS trailed 20-8 with 11:36 remaining in the half. A three-point play from Aundrae Williams sparked an 8-0 run for the Prairie Stars, which ended on a three from Vince Walker, cutting the deficit to just 20-16.

UIS found themselves down 10 with 4:40 remaining in the half, but an 11-0 run completed the comeback, giving UIS their first lead at 32-31 with 3:04 remaining. Nelson made a layup on a dish from Lijah Donnelly with 1:05 left to put UIS up 38-37, which would be the score at the half.

Even after the slow start, UIS shot 44.4 percent from the field in the first half and held a one-point advantage.

In the second half, UIS pushed their lead to as much as eight early, but Kentucky State cut that down to one on multiple occasions. UIS never lost the lead though and pushed their lead to as much as 15 with 2:11 left to play.

Nelson scored a game-high 22 points and added seven rebounds, an assist, and steal to his line. His 10-of-16 mark from the field was the most field goals recorded in his career as a Prairie Star. Longmeyer added 15 points and team-high nine rebounds, while also dishing two assists and tallying three steals.

"Gilwan really stepped up for us and had a huge night with 22 (points), and seven (rebounds), while our guards Logan and Aundrae did a great job of both handling Kentucky State's pressure while also guarding Dorian Jordan on the other end. It's really nice to have two point guards who bring their own abilities to impact the game."

Vince Walker added ten points and five rebounds off the bench and Williams added eight points of his own. Collin Stallworth tallied four points and four rebounds in 19 minutes.

"Collin (Stallworth) came off the bench and gave us some great minutes and he's really starting to look comfortable on the court."

This game served as a little bit of redemption, after Kentucky State came to Springfield last year and left with a 112-89 win.

UIS will return home to close out the calendar year with games against Glenville State on December 16^th and Lincoln Christian on December 18^th.