CARLINVILLE, Ill. – The Webster University men's basketball team was back in action this evening when they traveled to Carlinville, Illinois, to take on the Blackburn (Ill.) College Beavers for a SLIAC matchup. The Gorloks defeated the Beavers by a final score of 78-68 to improve to 6-8 on the year and 4-3 in the SLIAC. With the loss, Blackburn drops to 5-9 on the season and 4-3 in conference play.

Webster went 33-for-55 (60.0%) from the floor and 4-for-9 (44.4%) from behind the arc. They outrebounded the Beavers by a final count of 36-27 with six rebounds coming on the offensive end. Webster forced Blackburn to turn the ball over 15 times in the game and they dished out 13 assists.

Webster came out in the first half of the game and jumped out to an 8-4 lead in the first four minutes. The Beavers answered back with a 10-3 run to take a three point lead and the game remained close for most of the half. With the game tied at 26 late in the period, Webster would end the half on a 6-3 run to take a 32-29 lead into the locker room.

The Gorloks carried over their momentum into the second half and grew their lead to seven with just under 16 minutes to play in the game. They grew their lead to nine over the next few minutes but a 6-0 run from the Beavers cut the lead to three midway through the period. Webster would answer with a 12-4 run of their own to extend their lead back out to 11 and held off the Beavers down the stretch to solidify their fourth straight win.

Karl Moore Jr. led the way for Webster as he finished with a game high 20 points and a game high six rebounds. Jason Coleman and Jemard Sykes II also finished in double figures as Coleman had 16 points while Sykes II had 14 points and a game high five assists. In addition, Booker Simmons and Josh Luster each finished with eight points.

The Gorloks will return home on Saturday, January 13^th when they host the Fontbonne (Mo.) University Griffins for a rematch of last year's SLIAC Tournament Finals. The game is set to start at 3 p.m. in Grant Gymnasium.