The Stars went up to Romeoville to challenge the number 23 ranked Lewis Flyers last Thursday, and despite battling hard throughout, were beaten 74-66.

The Stars went into the game without leading scorer Jacob Williams, but were still able to put up a fight against the Flyers even without his contributions. The lead changed hands twice in this game. The biggest lead was held early in the first half by the Stars, who managed to pace themselves on a 15-5 start just a few minutes in. However, the Flyers, led by junior guard Ryan Jackson, went on a 24-9 run to retake the lead, and at the half led UIS by four.

Jamall Millison, UIS sophomore guard, had a stellar performance in the first half, making six of eight shots. He made three of his five attempts from beyond the arc, leading all scorers for either side with 15 points. We did all of this while dishing out two assists, blocking a shot and picking up three rebounds.

During the second half, the Flyers maintained their lead, but to the Stars’ credit, they never gave up. They hung around until the end – managing to cut the lead to one point and three points down the stretch. After Millison’s explosive first half, he was nearly blanked from the stat sheet in the second, going one for five and scoring only three points. His teammates picked up the slack and kept UIS in the game.

Turnovers and lack of free throw attempts were the Achilles’ heel for the Stars. They gave the ball away 12 times, resulting in 15 points for their opponent. UIS only managed to get to the line nine times, and made five baskets, with all five makes and six of their attempts coming in the second half. Lewis had more than twice the number of attempts, making 15 of 23.

The Stars’ ability to rebound is what kept the game close. They finished the game with an 11 rebound advantage with 10 offensive rebounds, gaining 17 points on second chances and not allowing any second chance points for Lewis. Even that wasn’t enough to propel UIS through their second half shooting slump, as their 56 percent from the first declined all the way to 40 percent.

Millison led the team in minutes with 36, and fatigue was most likely a factor with the absence of Williams. This game marks back-to-back road losses for the Stars.