ROMEOVILLE, ILL. – The Maryville men's basketball team put four players in double figures and had two double-doubles as the Saints won their first Great Lakes Valley Conference game with a 71-67 victory at Lewis University. Henry Sanchez led the way with 21 points, while Noah Courtney posted 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Kobe Clark finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds. Raynard Horry added 14 points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trailing 13-7, the Saints scored eight straight points to surge into the lead. Raynard Horry sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a Noah Courtney layup for a 15-13 lead. Down by one, Maryville reeled off a 9-0 burst to jump back ahead. Courtney hit two free throws and added a layup. Eric Hackett splashed a 3-pointer before Courtney threw down a dunk for a 28-20 edge. Henry Sanchez scored five consecutive points as the Saints took their largest lead of the half at 37-30. Maryville settled for a 39-32 advantage at halftime.
 
Up by four, the Saints tallied seven of the next eight points. Courtney and Evan Palmquist had back-to-back layups. After one Lewis free throw, Horry drilled another 3-pointer to push the Saints to a 46-36 lead. A pair at the stripe from Kobe Clark gave the Saints their largest lead of the game at 48-37 with 16 minutes to play. The margin was still nine after a Clark triple and a Sanchez jumper made it 56-47.
 
Lewis cut the gap down to 58-56 before Hackett converted two at the stripe and Horry drained a jumper for a 62-56 margin. Sanchez splashed in a crucial triple for a 65-58 lead with 3:52 to play. The Flyers closed to within 66-63 but the Maryville defense did not give up another basket for nearly two minutes. Courtney made a layup to push the gap to 68-63 with 50 seconds to go. The defense forced a miss and Sanchez tacked on one free throw with 33.1 ticks left. After another stop, Horry sealed the win with two more free throws with 19.1 second remaining for a 71-65 lead.
 
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points: Henry Sanchez - 21
Rebounds: Kobe Clark - 16
Assists: Raynard Horry and Evan Palmquist - 3
3-Pointers: Henry Sanchez - 3
Steals: three players - 1
Blocked Shots: Kobe Clark - 3
 
RECORDS
Maryville: 3-21, 1-15
Lewis: 4-19, 2-13
 
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Saints trek to Upper Iowa Saturday, Feb. 14, for a 1 pm start in Fayette, Iowa.