MACOMB, IL. — Western Illinois men's basketball dropped its Ohio Valley Conference opener on the road Thursday night, falling 92-76 to Lindenwood at Robert F. Hyland Arena.
Despite the loss, senior Antwaun Massey delivered a career night to lead the Leathernecks. Massey poured in a career-high 33 points on an efficient 15-of-21 shooting from the field, scoring consistently in the paint and accounting for nearly half of Western Illinois' offense. He added five rebounds, a block and a steal in 30 minutes of action.
Western Illinois (4-8, 0-1 OVC) trailed 42-28 at the halftime break after Lindenwood shot better than 55 percent from the floor in the opening half. The Leathernecks responded with a stronger second-half performance offensively, shooting 54.8 percent after the break, but were unable to close the gap as the Lions maintained control throughout the final 20 minutes.
Lucas Lorenzen joined Massey in double figures with 18 points, knocking down 4-of-7 shots from the field and going 8-of-11 at the free-throw line. Lorenzen also pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Karyiek Dixon added eight points and six rebounds, while Makai Kvamme and Isaiah Griffin chipped in five points apiece.
Western Illinois finished the night shooting 48.3 percent from the field and scored 52 points in the paint, but struggled at the free-throw line (15-of-28) and from three-point range (3-of-13). The Leathernecks were outrebounded 46-33 and allowed 20 second-chance points.
Lindenwood (7-4, 2-0 OVC) was led by Anias Futrell, who scored a game-high 36 points and connected on eight three-pointers. The Lions finished shooting 47.4 percent from beyond the arc and used balanced scoring to pull away down the stretch.
Western Illinois returns home to Western Hall on Monday to continue Ohio Valley Conference play against SIUE.
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