Eureka's Lessen Nets 1,000th Point in 75-64 Men's Basketball Win at Blackburn

CARLINVILLE, Ill. - Eureka College senior center Mark Lessen led all scorers with a season-high 31 points, including a layup early in the first half that gave him 1,000 points for his collegiate career, sending the Red Devils to a 75-64 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at Blackburn, Wednesday night in Carlinville, Ill. The decision gave Eureka eight straight wins, the program's longest win streak since the 1993-94 national championship season.

Eureka (11-6, 7-2 SLIAC) put together a three-possession lead midway through the opening half when senior guard Niko Rivera scored inside for a 20-13 lead with 10:37 to play before halftime. The Beavers (1-17, 1-8 SLIAC) came storming back, scoring 14 of the next 19 points to grab a 27-25 edge on Matt Chandler's jumper at the 7:25 mark.

The Red Devils regained the lead for good less than three minutes later on a jumper from senior center D.T. Thornton for a 31-29 cushion with 4:46 left. Thornton's bucket came as part of Eureka's 12-0 run to close the half, as the Red Devils' 39-29 halftime lead was their biggest of the half.

Eureka led by 14 points as late as the 12:44 mark of the second half on two free throws from Rivera to lead 56-42. Blackburn slowly chipped away at its deficit, clawing within three, 59-56, on Jon Griffel's jumper with 6:31 left. The visitors fired back with five unanswered points and led by at least five points the rest of the way.

Lessen, who entered the contest with 999 career points, went 13-for-18 from the field. He finished the game with 1,030 career points. He added nine rebounds and four blocked shots to narrowly miss a double-double.

Senior forward Dustin Fritsch did register a double-double, compiling 16 points and 10 boards. Rivera matched a career-high with 10 rebounds, all at the defensive end of the floor, while Thornton fell just shy of a career-best with 14 points off the bench. The Red Devils outrebounded the hosts, 41-32, and turned 11 offensive boards into 18 second-chance points.

Brandon Hill came off the bench to pace the Beavers with 19 points. He was followed by Chandler and Ira Williams with nine points apiece. Blackburn has dropped 12 of 13 games against Eureka since the two schools became SLIAC rivals prior to the 2006-07 season.

The Red Devils' eight straight wins mark their longest win streak since the 1993-94 Red Devils won their final nine games to win the NAIA Division II national championship. Eureka has also won seven consecutive SLIAC games, the Red Devils' longest stretch without a league defeat since beginning conference-affiliated play at the NCAA Division III level in 1996.

Eureka will continue its SLIAC road trip Saturday in a 3 p.m. start at Webster in St. Louis, Mo. The Red Devils handed the Gorloks a 72-64 defeat at the Reagan Center on Jan. 5.

Courtesy Eureka College sports information