PHOTO GALLERY

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – With its Midwest Regional semifinal win versus Lewis Sunday evening, the No. 15 UIndy men's basketball team (25-5) clinched its deepest-ever NCAA Tournament run.  Led by 24 points from Jordan Loyd and 20 from Joe Lawson, the 78-59 conquest of the seventh-seeded Flyers (22-9) sent the Greyhounds to their first-ever regional final appearance.
 
After advancing to the regional semifinal for the third time in the last four years, UIndy head coach Stan Gouard fully appreciated what it took to finally make the next step.

"It's a dream come true from a coach's standpoint," Gouard told WICR after the win. "I'm really happy.  We've been through a lot as a team in my coaching tenure here.  We've come a long way, but we're not done yet.  We have a tough basketball game to play Tuesday against Bellarmine."

UIndy advances to face its archrival and host Bellarmine (29-3) Tuesday for the right to represent the Midwest Region at the Division II Elite Eight.  Tip time from Louisville, Ky., is set for 7 p.m. ET.
 
Junior Jordan Loyd led all scorers with 24 points.  Two-thirds of that output came after a perfect 16-for-16 performance at the foul line, setting a new school mark for free throws in a game without a miss.
 
Led by Loyd's perfect performance, UIndy shattered its record for most free throws made in an postseason game, a record that stood for all of 29 hours.  One day after sinking 25 foul shots versus Michigan Tech, the Greyhounds shot an efficient 35-of-41 (.854) from the line.
 
Senior Joe Lawson also starred for the Hounds, finishing with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting while grabbing six boards.  More significantly, Lawson became the 38th player in program history to score 1,000 career points.  He reached quadruple digits just 80 seconds into the action with a pair of successful free throw attempts.
 
Coincidentally, the Indianapolis native also grabbed career rebound No. 500 in the contest, becoming just the 16th Greyhound to reach both statistical plateaus.
 
Much like in yesterday's victory against Michigan Tech, the Greyhounds set the tone with their defensive tenacity.  UIndy held both NCAA tournament opponents this weekend to less than 60 points, with Lewis shooting just 37 percent from the field and getting out-rebounded 43-28.
 
Despite seniors Lawson and McElroy whistled for two fouls before the midway point of the opening half, the Hounds surged ahead of the rival Flyers by 36-28 edge at the break.  UIndy trailed 11-7 early, and with its starting frontcourt on the bench, took control with a 13-4 run.
 
The rally was fueled by a pair of triples from reserve guard Kendall Vieke.  The latter shot was good for the 100th NCAA 3-pointer for the senior, who hit the mark in just three seasons in a Greyhound uniform.  The Vincennes, Ind., native finished the night 4-of-6 from downtown on the way to 12 points.
 
Later, UIndy extended the lead to 12 with 10:25 left in the game, but the Flyers scored 10 of the next 11 points to quickly cut it to 56-53 Hounds. 
 
After Lewis answered a Lawson trey with deuce, the UIndy defense leveled up to create five straight stops, sparking a critical 19-4 run from which the Flyers were unable to recover.
 
UIndy's 25 victories on the season are second in the program annals only to the 26 won by the 1963-64 squad, then called Indiana Central.  The Hounds have won 49 games the previous two seasons combined.