INDIANAPOLIS – The UIndy men's basketball team won its first NCAA tournament game in eight years in Saturday's opening round, defeating eighth-seeded William Jewell, 71-65, from inside Nicoson Hall.
Jarvis Walker led all players with 23 points, scoring at least 20 for the sixth time in the last eight contests.
With the positive result, the Greyhounds will face the winner of the night cap between Northern Michigan and Ferris State in Sunday's regional semifinal round.
INS & OUTS
The Greyhounds forged a massive 13-0 run in the final five minutes of the first half, building a 16-point lead at the break. Walker, who scored 13 points in the opening 20 minutes, drove through the lane to cap the impressive stretch.
Jewell, which had beaten UIndy twice earlier this season, refused to quit; the visitors held the Hounds scoreless for the first seven-plus minutes of the second half and inched back within single digits. With 12:20 reading on the game clock,
Julian Steinfeld cleaned up one of his three offensive rebounds with a putback to get the host offense back in sync.
Josiah Tynes drilled a pair of second-half triples to help fend off the furious Jewell comeback attempt, reaching double figures for just the second time in the last 10 games.
The teams traded buckets the rest of the way, as
Kendrick Tchoua iced the game away with a 4-of-5 effort from the charity stripe.
UIndy limited a hot Jewell offense to just 38.3 percent from the field, its best defensive effort since Feb. 8 against Upper Iowa.
INSIDE THE BOX
- UIndy was whistled for 19 fouls compared to Jewell's 12; as a result, the visitors shot 20 free throws with the host Hounds attempting 11.
- Steinfeld led a key Greyhound bench effort, totaling eight points and seven rebounds in 16+ minutes of action.
Sean Craig and
Zac Szul combined for eight points, each hitting a 3-pointer in the win.
- The Hounds outrebounded the Cardinals by 10, with
David Ejah joining Tchoua (8) and Steinfeld (7) as the three-highest board-getters.
- Jewell's Kobe McKinley, who was named the GLVC Championship Tournament MVP last weekend, was held scoreless in the second half and finished with 11 points.
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Dylan Ingram contributed to the fantastic bench effort, finishing with two blocks and two rebounds.
MORE NOTES
UIndy now leads the all-time series, 14-3 … Jewell earned the GLVC automatic-qualifying bid to the NCAA DII Midwest Regional by virtue of winning the league tournament title last Sunday, its first conference championship in any sport since beginning its transition to NCAA DII in 2009 … the last time the Greyhounds won an NCAA tournament was game was in 2016 with a 77-60 victory over Ashland in Somers, Wis.
UP NEXT
The Greyhounds await their opponent for Sunday evening's semifinal bout between a pair of GLIAC foes, Northern Michigan and Ferris State. The contest is set for 7:30 p.m. in Nicoson Hall.
