CHICAGO, Ill. --- The TIU men's basketball team hit the road on Wednesday night as they battled the Saint Xavier Cougars in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) action. Coming off a win at Roosevelt last Saturday, the Trojans looked to extend their win streak to six games.

TIU controlled the opening minutes of play with an early 10-6 lead before the Cougars jumped out in front. While the Trojans were able to keep the game close, they struggled to find consistent momentum to retake control of the game. While a Brandon McQueen layup pulled Trinity within one point with just under four minutes to go in the first half, SXU received a much needed defense effort from Jimmy Llinas, who blocked three shots in the opening frame. The Cougars shot 56% from the floor as they took a 40-33 lead into the halftime break.

In the second half, TIU again pulled within two possessions but struggled to keep up with Saint Xavier's high-powered offense led by Josh Niego and Charles Campbell. While Brandon Lawani led the Trojan offense in the second half, foul trouble limited TIU's depth when Lawani fouled out of the game after a stellar night, allowing the Cougars offense to roll with little issues. Trinity battled to make it a seven-point game in the final minutes, but couldn't stop SXU's offensive surge as they dropped the game by a score of 75-60.

Lawani led the night with a game-high 23 points, plus four rebounds and two blocked shots. McQueen recorded 20 points, as well as a game-high three steals in the loss, while Leon Williams and Diamond Presniakovas both notched seven rebounds.
 

ADDITIONAL GAME NOTES

• TIU falls to 5-19 all-time against Saint Xavier with tonight's loss. Trinity's last win against the Cougars came at home on Feb. 2, 2019 by a 81-73 score.

• Wednesday's loss snap's Trinity's four game winning streak, their longest since November of 2018.

• SXU outscored the Trojans 17-3 off the bench, and 17-13 off takeaways after TIU committed ten turnovers in the loss.

• The Cougars shot 56.6% in the game from the floor, holding the Trojans to 37.1% on the night.

• Both team's shot well from inside the paint, with 86 of the 135 total points scored from inside.

• Brandon Lawani's two blocks at Saint Xavier moved him into eighth all-time in program history in the category with 60, surpassing Teryck Taylor's 58 blocks during the 2003-04 season.
   

UP NEXT

The Trojans (8-5) will return to action on Saturday afternoon, February 13 as they host the St. Francis Fighting Saints at Van Dixhorn Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00pm CT and can be watched LIVE on the Trojan Sports Network.

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Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness and lifelong learning.