ST. LOUIS, MO. – Senior Aareon Smith hit the second of two free throws with 2.2 seconds to play following an intentional foul to give the University of Missouri-St. Louis men's basketball team a 71-70 victory over McKendree on Sunday afternoon in Great Lakes Valley Conference action.
 
Smith snagged a rebound after Tylor Wimbish blocked the Bearcats' shot attempt with under 10 seconds to play and drove the length of the court where he was fouled. Smith finished with a career-high 24 points and added 12 rebounds – his fifth double-double in the last six games – and dished seven assists.
 
UMSL improves to 10-2 overall, including 2-0 in the GLVC, while McKendree slips to 6-3 and 0-2 in the league.
 
The Tritons closed the game on the 15-4 run over the last 5:19 and rallied from an 11-point deficit with 9:05 to play. McKendree's last points of the game came at the 3:38 mark and were followed by two Smith free throws and a three-pointer from junior Brandon Marquardt at the 2:05 mark that knotted the score at 70-70.
 
The Bearcats opened the second half with a 25-12 scoring advantage to erase a 37-35 halftime deficit in a game that featured 14 lead changes and 10 ties.
 
Wimbish added 15 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots for the Tritons, which shot 45.8 percent from the field, including 52.2 percent in the first half, and owned a 33-26 rebounding advantage. The Bearcats shot 52.2 percent, including 57.1 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The Tritons' largest lead of the game came at the 11:43 mark in the first half at 21-12 on senior Derek Shouse's three-point bucket.  McKendree followed with a 21-9 run and took a 31-30 lead at the 2:05 mark.
 
UMSL returns to action on Thursday in a road contest at No. 23 ranked Lewis.
 
TRITON TIDBITS: UMSL improves to 7-0 at home this season… the Tritons have won seven straight against McKendree and improve to 14-5 in the all-time series.