The Westminster College Blue Jays remained tied for first place in the SLIAC after their 85-76 home victory over the MacMurray (Illinois) College Highlanders on Saturday.
Westminster (14-6) owns a share of the lead in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference with Greenville (Illinois) College, both at 10-3.
The Blue Jays - who rolled past MacMurray 77-52 on Jan. 4 in Jacksonville, Illinois - were in front 40-36 at halftime Saturday. Westminster opened the second half with a 15-4 run - capped off by a 3-pointer from junior guard Jimmy Villalobos - to open up a 55-40 advantage with 16 minutes, 43 seconds remaining in the contest.
Villalobos connected on four of the Blue Jays' eight 3-pointers to pace five Westminster players in double figures with 16 points. Junior forward Romo Tabb produced 13 points for the Blue Jays, who shot 54 percent (31-of-57) from the field, while senior guard Zach Nelson and junior center Sean O'Brien tallied 12 apiece.
Junior guard Tanner Cochran added 10 points for the Blue Jays. Villalobos also collected a team-high six rebounds as Westminster was easily outrebounded by a 41-29 margin.
Riley Spencer paced MacMurray (3-17, 3-11 SLIAC) - which shot 43 percent (28-of-65) as a team - with a game-high 22 points. Tim Frazier delivered 16 points and Brent Long scored 13.
The Blue Jays host a SLIAC game against Eureka (Illinois) College at 5 p.m. Monday.