ST. LOUIS, MO – The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) men's basketball team fell short in its comeback effort with the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL) with a 79-72 loss during Saturday's Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) matchup.
 
Zach Steinberg pulled down eight rebounds for the Prairie Stars (14-11, 6-9). The 6-foot-10 junior center from Wildwood, MO has gathered a UIS record 518 rebounds in his career.
 
UMSL (13-12, 8-8) pulled ahead to a 40-23 lead at halftime. UIS roared to a 15-2 run to start the second half. After the Tritons responded with an 11-2 run, the Prairie Stars put together a 19-7 run to cut their deficit to 60-59 with 5 minutes, 15 seconds remaining. The Tritons steadily pulled away and outscored the Prairie Stars 19-13 for the remainder of the contest.
 
"I was very proud of our fight in the second half," UIS coach Bill Walker said. "We just could not overcome a slow start."
 
Eddie Longmeyer cashed in 28 points. The 6-foot-3 senior guard from St. Louis, MO sank 9-of-11 (81.8 percent) shots from the free-throw line.
 
Gilwan Nelson notched 21 points. The 6-foot-5 junior forward from Mt. Vernon, IL knocked down 6-of-9 (66.7 percent) shots from the field.
 
"Eddie was phenomenal and Gilwan got it going."
 
Lijah Donnelly turned in 12 points. Vince Walker provided three points. Steinberg, Collin Stallworth, Logan Gonce and Bahari Amaya rounded out the UIS scoring effort with two points apiece. Stallworth blocked three shots and Gonce collected three steals.
 
Johnathan Matthews led the Tritons with 19 points as he converted 10-of-11 (90.9 percent) shots from the free-throw line. Eric Dust recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Shane Wissink tallied 10 points. Elijah Watson dished out eight assists.
 
The Tritons drained 25-of-29 (86.2 percent) shots from the free-throw line while the Prairie Stars made 17-of-23 (73.9 percent) attempts from the charity stripe.
 
UIS turned the ball over 17 times as UMSL outscored the Prairie Stars 25-14 off turnovers. The Tritons committed 11 turnovers.
 
UMSL converted 22-of-58 (37.9 percent) shots from the field and 10-of-22 (45.5 percent) attempts from 3-point range. UIS hit 24-of-54 (44.4 percent) shots from the floor and 7-of-23 (30.4 percent) attempts from the perimeter.
 
The Prairie Stars and the Tritons both finished with 35 rebounds.
 
UIS topped UMSL 11-3 on fast-break points.
 
The Prairie Stars are currently ranked No. 11 in the GLVC Point Rating System among teams eligible for the GLVC Tournament. UIS is scheduled for two conference matchups next week. The Prairie Stars host Maryville University (18-7, 10-6) for Senior Night on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in TRAC, where UIS will honor seniors Longmeyer and Wayde Smith.
 
"It would be great to end our home season in a winning note against a very tough team.
 
UIS closes out the season by clashing with Truman State University (16-9, 11-5) on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Kirksville, MO.