JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – The Spalding University men's basketball team fell Saturday evening to the MacMurray Highlanders, 72-65. The loss brings the Golden Eagles overall record to 10-13 with an 8-8 mark in the conference. The win brings the Highlanders to 14-9 overall and 11-5 in SLIAC play.
 
Junior James Turner led Spalding with 17 points on the night. Nick Trisko tallied another double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds, while Brandon Goeing chipped in 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting. Deavis Johnson had a stand-out performance for the Highlanders as he dropped 22 points and nine rebounds, coming up just short of a double-double.
 
Goeing would start the game with a three-point field to give the Golden Eagles an early lead, but MacMurray would answer back with a 6-0 run to jump in front. After a three by Turner once again gave Spalding the lead, the Highlanders would use a 10-2 run to give them a 17-10 advantage with just over 11 minutes remaining in the half. Turner would catch fire hitting three straight three-point field goals as Spalding erupted for a 13-0 run to give them a 23-17 lead. MacMurray was not phased and answered with a 7-0 run to retake the lead, 24-23 with just over six minutes remaining in the half. Spalding would close out the half on a 10-4 run and head into the locker room up, 33-28.
 
Dominique Ellis opened the half quickly with a three-point field goal to push the lead to eight just 12 seconds into the half. A 6-0 run by the Highlanders would see Spalding hold a narrow lead at 36-34 with two and a half minutes gone in the second half. A 7-3 spurt from Spalding would push their lead back up to six; however, the Highlanders again had the answer with a 4-0 run to cut the lead back down two, 43-41. The next three minutes would see a three-point contest ensue between MacMurray and Goeing as each would convert two from beyond the arc and see Spalding hold a 49-47 advantage. A 7-2 run by MacMurray would see them once again regain the lead at 54-51 with just under nine minutes remaining in the game. The teams really started to cancel each other out as the clock began to wind down and MacMurray would have a 63-59 lead with just over three minutes remaining in the game. A quick 4-0 run from MacMurray would be enough to separate the two teams as they would go 5-of-6 from the free throw line down the stretch to seal the win.
 
Spalding will look to rebound as they head to St. Louis, Mo. this Wednesday, February 17^th to take on Webster University. The game is set to begin at 9 pm EST.