INDIANAPOLIS – The UIndy men's basketball capped its home slate for the 2023 calendar year with its fourth straight win, defeating Lewis by a score of 90-76 from Nicoson Hall.
The Greyhounds shot 70.4 percent from the field in the second half, including an 8-for-13 (61.5 percent) mark from 3-point range.
Jesse Bingham led all players with 22 points, while
Kendrick Tchoua scored 11 of his 17 in the final 20 minutes.
INS & OUTS
After a back-and-forth opening moments of the second half, the Greyhounds regained the lead for good with a pair of free throws from Bingham at the 13:35 mark. Tchoua then took advantage of a Flyers miscue with an and-1 from the right block.
Sean Craig drilled a 3-pointer from the corner with nine minutes left, ending a huge 17-4 run that put the home team up double digits the rest of the way. The sophomore played big minutes down the stretch, recording eight points, two boards, and two steals in the second half.
The UIndy defense caused 14 turnovers in the win, scoring 10 points off seven second-half miscues.
Josiah Tynes was charged with two of his three thefts in the final 20 minutes, scoring five of his 10 points after the break.
A 3-pointer from
Zac Szul forced a Lewis timeout with under four minutes left in the first half, with the bucket ending a huge momentum shift in favor of the Hounds, who scored 10 of 12 points in a 2:18 stretch.
INSIDE THE BOX
- Seven Hounds recorded at least one assist, as the team matched its season-high in helpers with 21.
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Julian Steinfeld was key off the bench, finishing with seven points – two dunks – and a pair of rebounds in more than 12 minutes of action.
- Bingham's 22 points ties his season-best total in the scoring column and has now scored at least 16 in each of the past three games.
- Tchoua was a perfect 8-for-8 from the field, tallying one free throw to his scoring line.
- UIndy was 13-of-14 (92.9 percent) from the charity stripe in the win, the team's single-game best free throw percentage of the season.
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Paul Zilinskas drilled a pair of triples in the second half, finishing with eight points.
MORE NOTES
UIndy eats into Lewis' all-time series lead with the win, now trailing 51-40 … Bingham was all over the stat sheet, finishing with seven rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and one steals … the Flyers entered the contest ranked eighth in DII in free throw percentage, but went just 9-for-13 (69.2 percent) from the line on Saturday.
HOUND BYTES
Bingham on the win…
"We faced some adversity; we didn't play our best basketball in the first half. The halftime talk was about intensity and we knew we were going to get their best shot."
Bingham on the team's depth…
"When you got 10 guys who can contribute in some type of way, whether that be scoring or rebounding or just flat-out defending, it's going to make a huge difference way down the line."
UP NEXT
The Greyhounds have one final contest before the calendar turns to 2024, visiting Pitt-Johnstown next Friday, Dec. 15, for a 6 p.m. tip. It will be the first meeting between the programs.
