QU men fall apart in second half, allow Lewis to go on backbreaking 17-2 run

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. — Leading by 11 points at halftime Saturday at Neil Carey Arena, the Quincy University men’s basketball team had the opportunity to run its win streak to three consecutive games and give itself a boost in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings.

Then came the meltdown.

Ahead 52-42 with 13:52 remaining in regulation, the Hawks allowed Lewis to go on an 8-0 run to get back in the game. The Flyers never let off the pedal, piling up 51 points in the second half to secure an 83-73 victory.

The Flyers took the lead on Bruno Williams’ jumper with 6:15 to play and let it spearhead a 17-2 run that put Lewis ahead 73-60 with 1:38 to play.

The Hawks shot just 32.1 percent from the field in the second half and went 3 of 12 from 3-point range. It negated all the advantages the Hawks had.

They outscored the Flyers 23-13 in points off turnovers and 11-4 in second-chance points. However, Lewis owned a 40-20 advantage in points in the paint and an 18-5 edge in fastbreak points.

Charles Callier led five Hawks in double figures with 15 points. Jalen Stamps and Adam Moore had 13 and 12 points, respectively, off the bench.

Quincy is 12-13 overall and 5-10 in the GLVC. The Hawks are currently 11th in the GLVC Point Rating System used to determine the seeds for the conference tournament.