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St. Charles, Mo. - The Lewis University men's basketball team, led by five players in double-figures, did not trail once as the Flyers earned the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament title with the 80-71 victory over No. 14 UW-Parkside at the Family Center on Sunday (March 6) evening. The tournament title is Lewis' second, as the Flyers last won in 2002.

Lewis senior forward Kyle Nelson (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) posted a double-double with a game-high 23 points on 10-for-17 shooting, including 10 rebounds. Sophomore forward Max Strus (Hickory Hills, Ill./Stagg), the 2016 GLVC Tournament MVP, had 17 points, while freshman guard Delaney Blaylock (Wyoming, Mich./Godwin Heights) and junior guard Capel Henshaw (Harrisburg, Ill./Harrisburg) each contributed 11 points.

Junior point guard Miles Simelton (Oswego, Ill./Oswego), a GLVC All-Tournament Team selection, had 10 points and four assists in the win for the Flyers.

With the victory, Lewis improves to 24-8, while UW-Parkside drops to 24-5. The Flyers and Rangers will find out their NCAA Tournament fate on Sunday night at 9:30 PM. The link to view the Selection Show can be found here.

UW-Parkside senior guard Andy Mazurczak, the 2016 GLVC Player of the Year, posted 17 of his team-best 22 points in the second half. Ranger sophomore guard Kendale McCullum had 15 points, six assists and five rebounds, while sophomore forward Chavares Flanigan added 11 points.

As a team, Lewis shot 49.2% (31-for-63) from the field, 58.3% (7-for-12) from three-point range and 91.7% (11-for-12) from the free throw line. The Rangers made 42.9% (27-for-63) from the field and 34.8% (8-for-23) from long range. UW-Parkside made 60% (9-for-15) of its free throw attempts.

Lewis jumped out to a 49-34 halftime lead as they hit 12 of its last 17 shots, including a Strus 40-footer at the buzzer.

The Flyers knew that the Rangers would not go away quietly, as they went on a 33-18 run to open the second half and tie the game up at 67 with 6:59 left in regulation. Mazurczak accounted for 15 of the Rangers' 33 points during that stretch.

Lewis responded with a 6-0 run over the next 2:30, behind buckets from Blaylock, Strus and Simelton, to regain the 73-67 lead with 4:29 left in the game. 

Both team traded baskets, before a pair of Mazurczak free throws brought UW-Parkside to within four at 75-71 with 3:11 left in the game.

Neither team scored on its next three possessions, but Strus sealed the game with a three-pointer with 39 seconds left to give the Flyers the 78-71 lead.