Box Score ST. LOUIS, MO. – The University of Missouri-St. Louis men's basketball team used a balanced scoring attack en route to posting an 86-79 Great Lakes Valley Conference win at Maryville on Monday night.
 
Senior Aareon Smith tallied his 11^th double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead the offense as UMSL improves to 13-4 overall, including 5-2 in the GLVC. The win also moves the Tritons into a tie for first place with Drury in the West Division standings. Maryville slips to 9-7 and 4-2 in the league. Drury travels to Maryville on Thursday night before visiting UMSL on Saturday, while the Tritons will host Missouri S&T on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
 
Seniors Tylor Wimbish and Derek Shouse followed with 15 and 13 points, respectively, while all 10 players who saw action in the contest scored. UMSL shot 53.8 percent, including 52.4 percent (11-of-21) from three-point range. Six different players connected on a three-pointer.
 
UMSL scored 11 unanswered in opening the game with a 13-5 advantage, but the Saints answered back with an 11-3 run, including a stretch of eight straight to knot the score at 16-16 with 12:51 to play. Smith then ended a three-minute 19 second drought for the Tritons to ignite an 18-5 run over the next 5:20, capped with nine straight points, as UMSL posted a 34-21 lead on junior Tre Ogles' layup at the 6:14 mark. However, Maryville closed the half on a 12-3 run to trim the deficit to 37-33 at the break.
 
An 11-4 run by the Tritons to open the second half extended the lead to 48-37 just three minutes in and after a Maryville three-pointer closed the gap to 52-46 with 13:23 on the clock, freshman Max Cook scored five straight to start an 11-2 run that widened UMSL's lead to 63-48 with 8:15 to play. Cook later connected on his second three-pointer of the game at the 3:41 mark to give UMSL its largest lead of the game at 76-59. Maryville followed with a 10-2 run to pull within 78-69 1:30 to go and pulled within seven points twice, but the Tritons went 9-of-14 at the free throw line in the final 1:35, including 5-of-5 in the final 40 seconds, to help preserve the win.
 
UMSL owned a 32-29 rebounding advantage with Wimbish and Shouse grabbing six each. Junior Derek Williams dished out five assists.
 
Maryville shot an even 45 percent after a 51.6 percent second half outing.
 
TRITON TIDBITS: UMSL improves to 16-2 all-time against Maryville… the Tritons snapped a two-game road losing streak with the win… UMSL has netted double digit three-pointers in eight games this season… the Tritons bench outscored Maryville's bench, 34-6… UMSL was wrapping up a stretch of three games in five days and was playing its fourth game on the road in its last five outings.