The University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team continues their season by welcoming two in-region opponents to TRAC. The Stars host Purdue Northwest on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. and Grand Valley State on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. to celebrate Kids Night. 

UIS (8-4) 

The Prairie Stars are coming off a huge win on Wednesday night against Division III opponent, Knox College. The Stars were limitless on both offense and defense, winning the game 104-51. The 104 points were the most points scored by the Stars this season. Three Prairie Stars finished with double-digit points on the night as Jayden Johnson had 19 points, Kyle Ingram finished with 18, and Jack Weber recorded 16. UIS shot 42-for-68 (61.8%) from the field, including 17-for-34 (50.0%) from three. Knox shot 23-for-60 (38.3%) from the field, and only 2-for-13 from three. UIS is currently 4-1 in GLVC play, sitting in second place behind Indianapolis. 

Purdue Northwest (7-3)

The Pride last played on December 7 and 9, going 1-1 in the two games.

On December 7 the Pride lined up against 14th ranked Ferris State. A quickfire run early in the second half gave PNW the lead, which would change by the half. Clutch free throws down the stretch allowed the Pride to squeak out the win, 84-80. Brendan Temple led the Pride with a career-high 30 points while also grabbing four rebounds and three assists. CJ Jackson added 18 points, including 4-of-8 from deep. Kalil Whitehead chipped in with 13 points and seven rebounds. PNW shot 30-of-64 (46.9%) from the field and went 8-of-18 (44.4%) from behind the arc. Ferris State shot 26-of-51 (51.0%) from the floor and shot 8-of-18 (44.4%) from the three-point line.

On December 9 PNW welcomed Lake Superior State to Hammond for another GLIAC game. Lake Superior State went on a 23-8 run in the first half to take a 35-20 advantage. The Lakers never gave up the lead the rest of the way despite PNW's repeated efforts. Brendan Temple, CJ Jackson, Cameron Alford, and Kalil Whitehead all had 12 points for the Pride. Anthony Irvin finished with nine points and a team-high nine rebounds. The Pride finished the contest shooting 25-of-63 (39.7%) from the field and went 8-of-18 (44.4%) from deep. The Lakers shot 26-of-51 (51.0%) from the floor and went 12-of-22 (54.5%) from the three-point line. 

Currently, five players are averaging over 10 points per game for the Pride. Brendan Temple is averaging 13.3 ppg, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.1 assists. Cameron Alford is averaging 13.1 ppg, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. CJ Jackson is averaging 13.0 ppg and 4.5 rebounds. Kalil Whitehead is averaging 10.9 ppg and 5.4 rebounds. Dalton Gayman is averaging 10.1 ppg and a team-high 6.8 rebounds per game. 

Grand Valley State (4-4)

GVSU's last game was on December 8 against Davenport to start their GLIAC campaign.

The Lakers would take the lead early in the game against Davenport and not give it up as GVSU won 75-65. William Dunn led the Lakers in scoring with 19 points, going 4-for-6 from three. Britain Harris registered 16 points as well. GVSU dominated on the glass, outrebounding the Panthers 48-33 including hauling down 18 offensive rebounds. Marius Grazulis had 11 rebounds of his own. The Laker bench also outscored the Panthers bench 34-20. GVSU shot 25-for-61 (41.0%) from the field and went 8-for-27 (29.6%) from three. Davenport shot 21-of-54 (38.9%) from the field and 6-for-20 (30.0%) from three.

GVSU is currently 1-1 against GLVC teams on the year. The Lakers beat Quincy 105-63, but lost to Indianapolis 67-63. GVSU plays McKendree on Sunday afternoon in Lebanon, Illinois. 

Five Lakers are averaging over 10 points per game through their first 8 games. Marius Grazulis is averaging 13.9 ppg along with 9.9 rebounds per game. The other four are: Britain Harris (12.9 ppg), William Dunn (11.4 ppg), Trevon Gunter (10.4 ppg), Mason Docks (10.3 ppg). 

How to Watch

Every home game this year will be streamed on GLVCSN behind a paywall. The prices are $75 for the season and you will be able to watch any men's basketball game on the site. Or, you can pay $10 per game to watch. You are able to follow the live stats of each game through the UIS MBB schedule.

Up Next

A small break will happen to celebrate the holiday season, but men's basketball returns to TRAC on January 3 against Drury.