FULTON, Mo. - The Spalding University men's basketball team beat Westminster College, 58-48, Saturday afternoon in Fulton, Missouri improving to 11-5 on the season and 8-1 in conference play.

James Turner led the Golden Eagle offense with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Freshman Donnie Lewis had a solid all-around outing. Lewis tallied five points, four rebounds, four assists and six steals.  

Matt Murphy led three Blue Jays that finished in double figures with 14 points, Brandon Moore and Tanner Gentges scored 12 points and 10 points respectively.

The Golden Eagles created chaos on the defensive side of the ball forcing 17 Blue Jay turnovers resulting in 17 points off turnovers. Offensively the Golden Eagles found their range from beyond the arc knocking down 6-of-10 (60%) three-point attempts.

Spalding got out to a quick start taking a 10-3 lead on a Chad Sellars jumper, but the Blue Jays scored the next seven points tying the game on a Tanner Cochran layup at the 11:27 mark. However, the Golden Eagles dug in on defense holding Westminster to two points the remainder of the half, while scoring 15 points to take a 25-12 lead into the break.

The Golden Eagles pushed their lead to 17 points on a Lewis jumper five minutes into the second half, but the Blue Jays clawed their way back cutting the SU lead to seven points following a Jaime Villalobos jump shot with 2:45 remaining. However, Spalding's Jovante Lavender answered with a layup, and Renaldo Moore and Brandon Goeing converted four free throws to put the game out of reach.

Up next, SU will host a showdown with Greenville Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. EST. The Panthers handed the Golden Eagles their only SLIAC loss of the season, and Wednesday's matchup could have major implications on determining the top seed and host site for the SLIAC tournament.