The University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team closed out the regular season with a 79-78 win over Southwest Baptist, their nineteenth win of the season. 

UIS pulled ahead early, hitting seven three-pointers in the first half. The Bearcats reeled UIS in  to enter halftime down by two points (37-35). Southwest Baptist got ahead by eleven with just over a quarter of regulation remaining and led for much of the second half.

A three-pointer by Michael Wright tied the game 73-73 with 1:46 on the clock before a good free throw by Southwest Baptist put the Bearcats in a winning position. Wright hit his eighth three-pointer to make it 76-74 and Jacob Hanna just beat the shot clock to give UIS a five point lead with seven seconds on the clock. The Bearcats were then successful in two free throw opportunities, but missed a layup at the end of regulation to extend the UIS winning streak to five games. 
 
Michael Wright dropped 24 points and was one of three Prairie Stars who shot over .600 from the field (Max Kunnert 63.6%, Jacob Hanna 62.5%, Michael Wright 61.5%). The duo of Max Kunnert and Jacob Hanna scored a combined 30 points.

UIS men's basketball will return to the GLVC Championship Tournament this year. Stay tuned @UISAthletics on social media or at uisprairiestars.com for tournament information.