The University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team will continue their season with two road games this upcoming weekend. The Prairie Stars play Southwest Baptist on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Drury on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
UIS (13-6, 6-3)
The Prairie Stars went 1-0 in their only game last weekend against Quincy. UIS currently 6-3 and tied for third place in the GLVC standings.
On Saturday UIS played Quincy in a pivotal conference matchup. The Stars took an 18-2 lead early, but Quincy roared back into a 23-22 lead with 7:49 left in the first half. UIS ended the first half on a 9-0 run to take a 35-27 lead into the break. Quincy was able to cut the Prairie Star lead to as little as 5 in the second half, but couldn't get any closer. The Prairie Stars hit three three-pointers in a row from Rice, Kunnert, and Rice again to stretch the lead to 50-36. UIS continued their dominance for the rest of the half to win the contest 78-56. Jordan Rice led all scorers with 18 points on 6-for-14 shooting, including going 3-for-5 from behind the arc. Rice also finished with 7 rebounds and 6 assists on the day. Jacob Hanna totaled 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Max Kunnert scored 14 points with 12 coming from three-pointers. Khalil Ross finished with 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. UIS led in rebounds (36-33), assists (21-8), and forced turnovers (9-8). UIS shot 28-for-54 (51.9%) from the field, 10-for-22 (45.5%) from three, and 12-of-21 (57.1%) from the free-throw line. Quincy shot 18-for-53 (34.0%)from the field, 5-of-18 (27.8%) from three, and 15-of-22 (68.2%) from the free-throw line.
The Prairie Stars are 3-1 on the road in conference play. UIS scores 82.1 points per game, shooting 51.4% from the field. UIS only allows opponents to score 71.0 points per game, shooting 45.6%. This margin of 11.1 leads the GLVC. The Stars also lead the conference in three-point percentage at 42.3%.
Southwest Baptist (5-12, 1-8)
The Bearcats went 0-2 last weekend and are looking for their first conference win since December 9. The Bearcats are currently 14th in the GLVC.
On Thursday night SBU traveled to Truman State where the Bulldogs dominated the Bearcats. Truman State used a 47-point second half to pull away in what was a close contest at halftime. The Bulldogs won 84-58 after making fifteen three-pointers. SBU turned the ball over 17 compared to Truman's 12. Drew McMillin led SBU with 11 points, while Drenin Dinkins added 10 off the bench. Southwest Baptist shot 22-for-57 (38.6%) from the field, only 2-of-18 (11.1%) from three, and 12-for-15 (80.0%) from the free-throw line. TSU shot 28-for-51 (54.9%) from the field, 15-for-32 (46.9%) from three, and 13-of-15 (86.7%) from the free-throw line.
Saturday afternoon the Bearcats visited Upper Iowa in what turned out to be another tough day for SBU. UIU started the game quickly and SBU was never able to make it close as the Peacocks led the entire way. Baptist had a much better second half, but couldn't entirely close the 23-point gap that UIU held at halftime. Upper Iowa won the contest 90-76. Drenin Dinkins led all scorers with 22 points on 7-for-16 shooting from the field. Both Drew McMillin and David Hector had 11 points for the Bearcats. SBU shot 29-of-63 (46.0%) from the field, 4-for-19 (21.1%) from three, and 14-for-20 (70.0%) from the free-throw line. UIU shot 31-for-59 (52.5%) from the field, 13-for-24 (54.2%) from three, and 15-of-19 (78.9%) from the free-throw line.
The Bearcats are 4-5 at home this year. SBU is scoring 68.0 points per game on 43.0% shooting. They are allowing opponents to score 70.2 points per game on 44.3% shooting.
Drury (10-7, 3-6)
Drury went 0-2 last weekend as they try to stay in the race for a conference tournament berth. The Panthers are currently 11th in the GLVC.
On Thursday night the Panthers traveled to Upper Iowa where the Peacocks pulled away late to win 86-71. DU only trailed 35-34 at the half, which turned into a four-point lead early in the second half. The two teams traded leads until Upper Iowa, leading 51-50, went on a 10-2 run to extend their lead to eight with 8:46 remaining. The Peacocks would build on this lead as the time continued to run down. Logan Applegate led the Panthers with 18 points. Riley Naeger (14) and Brock Wakefield (10) were the other two Drury players who finished with double-digit points. Drury shot 28-for-68 (41.2%) from the field, 6-of-26 (23.1%) from three, and 9-for-14 (64.3%) from the free-throw line. UIU shot 31-for-66 (47.0%) from the field, 5-of-18 (27.8%) from three, and 19-of-25 (76.0%) from the free-throw line.
Saturday afternoon the Panthers took all the Truman State Bulldogs in Kirksville in a pivotal matchup for conference placement. TSU jumped out to a 23-5 lead, but DU chipped away and only trailed 39-38 at the intermission. Drury took an early lead in the second half as both teams traded leads down the stretch. A PJ Ngambi three-pointer with 4:36 remaining gave Drury a 61-58 lead, which was answered on the next possession by TSU. Truman State took the lead for good with 48 seconds left after another three-pointer. In the end, TSU held off the Panthers for a 68-63 win. Logan Applegate once again led the Panthers with 16 points, while PJ Ngambi finished with 11. DU shot 24-for-57 (42.1%) from the field, 11-for-28 (39.3%) from three, and 4-of-8 (50.0%) from the free-throw line. TSU shot 21-for-56 (37.5%) from the field, 8-of-24 (33.3%) from three, and 18-for-25 (72.0%) from the free-throw line.
Drury is 8-1 at home this year. The Panthers are averaging 77.8 points per game on 48.3% shooting. They are allowing opponents to score 72.4 points per game on 42.5% shooting. UIS beat Drury 79-75 on January 3 in their first matchup of the year.
How to Watch
All conference games are streamed on GLVCSN behind a paywall with prices being $75 for the season or $10 per gameLive stats will be available at the links on the UIS MBB schedule.
Up Next
The Prairie Stars return home next weekend for a game on Thursday against William Jewell at 7:30 p.m. and a Saturday matchup against Rockhurst at 3:00 p.m.
