Box score

INDIANAPOLIS- The UIndy men's basketball team dropped an 84-78 decision on Pack the House night to the visiting Lewis Flyers Saturday. The loss was just the second on the Nicoson Hall hardwood for UIndy, which falls to 8-2 on its home court.

UIndy (9-7, 3-4 GLVC) took a few minutes to find its rhythm in the first half, taking its first lead just midway through the period on a three-point make by Ryan Sims. The teams would trade the lead for the next three minutes, with the Greyhounds taking over for the rest of the half at the 6:37 mark on a triple from Nate Blank.

The Greyhounds stayed on top, by as many as eight, through the halftime break, heading into the locker room with a 41-36 lead.

Another Sims three put the Greyhounds ahead by seven just more than two minutes into the second half, but Lewis (11-6, 3-5 GLVC) put together a 7-0 lead to tie the score at 47-47 at the 15:53 mark.

After a two-minute scoring drought, Blank settled the tie with a gutty three-point play in the paint to put UIndy back on top. Back-to-back scores from Matt Toth around the 10-minute mark gave the Flyers their first lead of the second half, 55-53, prompting a UIndy timeout.

The teams tossed the lead back and forth until the 8:47 mark, when a pair of free throws from Donald Rowe gave Lewis back the lead. The Flyers would hold the advantage by as many as five over the next three minutes, before UIndy reknotted the score 67-67.

Lewis rattled off five straight to take the lead for the remainder of the game. It was again Sims and Blank keeping UIndy in the thick of things, though, with Blank making good on a pair of late free throws to cut the Lewis lead to four, and Sims following with a stellar defensive effort leading to a UIndy steal with 28 seconds remaining.

The effort was too little too late, however, with a pair of free throws from Dennis Thomas, Jr. with two seconds remaining icing the 84-78 Flyer win.

Blank finished with 24 points for the Greyhounds, while Sims added 22, including six threes. DeWann Squires completed a double-double for the night with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Rowe led the Flyers with 20 points. Lewis shot a stunning 96.2 percent from the free throw line, making good on 25 of its 26 attempts.

UIndy heads to Missouri S&T for a Monday contest against the Miners. The Greyhounds return home to Nicoson Hall next Thursday and Saturday for GLVC East games against Southern Indiana and Kentucky Wesleyan.