Dontrez Williams makes a fast break slam dunk during Lindenwood’s win over Morehead State on Thursday. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| NCAA Men’s Basketball | 1 | 2 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morehead State (6-8, 2-1) | 38 | 26 | 64 |
| Lindenwood (9-5, 3-0) | 44 | 33 | 77 |
ST. CHARLES, MO — The Lindenwood University men’s basketball team began the new year with a bang, as the Lions defeated Morehead State, 77-64, to move the team to 9-5 on the season, 3-0 in Ohio Valley Conference play, and 6-0 at Hyland Arena this season.
Four Lions scored in double digits, led by grad student center Milos Nenadic, who scored a game-high 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Sophomore Dontrez Williams was right behind Nenadic, with tied a career-high with 20 points.
Lindenwood began the game on a black-and-gold hot streak, as it made each of its first six three-point attempts. Williams made three of those six to help the Lions jump out to a quick 20-9 lead.
Later in the half, the guards helped spark a quick 7-0 run in the middle of the half to give the Lions their largest lead of the first half at 32-21 with 8:36 to play. Clayton Jackson started the run with a fast break layup and assisted on a Nenadic three before Mekhi Cooper assisted on a layup by Anias Futrell to put Lindenwood in front by 11.
Morehead State cut Lindenwood’s lead to two at 38-36 with 2:20 remaining in the first half, but Jackson converted on an and-1 off balance shot to put the Lions up by six (44-38) heading into the break.
Lindenwood’s Milos Nenadic makes a short layup during the Lions’ win over Morehead State, Thursday evening at Hyland Arena in St. Charles. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
In the second half, Williams scored the first four points for the Lions in transition which included a monstrous dunk that brought the crowd to its feet. Nenadic followed the dunk with another three pointer and extended the lead to 51-46 with 16:30 to go in the game.
Morehead State kept the game close and cut the Lion lead to 53-50 with 14:21 to go, but the Lions would use another run to separate themselves for good.
Nenadic scored six straight points in the paint on his own to put Lindenwood in the drivers seat at 63-53 with just over seven minutes to go.
Jackson would score six straight points of his own for the Lions later in the second half to extend Lindenwood’s lead to nine with 4:23 to go and assisted on a Robert Lewis fast break layup to seal the deal for Lindenwood.
Jackson ended the game with 17 points on 7-12 shooting, and added seven assists and four rebounds. Cooper also had seven assists on the afternoon to go along with six rebounds and three points.
The defense held Morehead State to 30 percent shooting from the floor in the second half and allowed just four three pointers all game.
Lindenwood will return to action on Saturday, when the Lions will host Southern Indiana. Tip off at Hyland Arena that day is slated for 3:30 p.m., and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
MOREHEAD STATE 64
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04 | Carroll,Jon | * | 30 | 9-14 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-6 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 18 |
| 03 | Marshall,George | * | 38 | 4-10 | 2-7 | 6-6 | 1-4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 10 | Dawson,Chase | * | 20 | 2-5 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 22 | Farrell,Tyonne | * | 17 | 1-4 | 0-1 | 1-4 | 0-5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 33 | Parker,Clayton | * | 28 | 0-4 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 00 | LeGree,Josiah | 20 | 3-9 | 1-4 | 3-4 | 2-1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | |
| 02 | Cunningham,Davion | 22 | 3-8 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| 24 | Releford,Tamaury | 7 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 08 | Mellouk,Anouar | 15 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1-5 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 05 | Dawson III,Vince | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 25-60 | 4-19 | 10-15 | 12-28 | 40 | 18 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 6 | 64 |
LINDENWOOD 77
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07 | Nenadic, Milos | * | 35 | 9-12 | 3-5 | 0-3 | 1-5 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 21 |
| 01 | Williams, Dontrez | * | 37 | 8-13 | 3-6 | 1-4 | 0-1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 20 |
| 08 | Futrell, Anias | * | 31 | 2-10 | 1-5 | 7-10 | 1-5 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| 22 | Lewis, Robert | * | 24 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0-4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 00 | Cooper, Mekhi | * | 31 | 1-5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-6 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 34 | Jackson, Clayton | 33 | 7-12 | 0-2 | 3-3 | 0-4 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | |
| 21 | Anthony, Kevin | 9 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 29-55 | 8-20 | 11-22 | 5-27 | 32 | 16 | 19 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 77 |
2025-26 LINDENWOOD LIONS MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 4, 2025 (Tuesday) | 7 p.m. | Away | #10 Texas Tech University | Lubbock, TX |  | L, 98-60 (0-1) |
| November 6, 2025 (Thursday) | 6:00 p.m. | Home | University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy | Hyland Arena | | W, 116-51 (1-1) |
| November 10, 2025 (Monday) | 7:00 p.m. | Away | SLU | St. Louis, MO | | L, 109-66 (1-2) |
| November 14, 2025 (Friday) | 5:30 p.m. | Neutral | Charleston Southern | Huntsville, AL | W, 83-77 (2-2) | |
| November 16, 2025 (Sunday) | 3:00 p.m. | Away | Alabama A&M | Huntsville, AL | L, 74-65 (2-3) | |
| November 20, 2025 (Thursday) | 5:00 p.m. | Away | Indiana | Bloomington, IN |  | L, 73-53 (2-4) |
| November 24, 2025 (Monday) | 6:00 p.m. | Home | Kansas City | Hyland Arena | | W, 80-67 (3-4) |
| December 2, 2025 (Tuesday) | 7:00 p.m. | Away | Northern Illinois | DeKalb, IL | W, 99-64 (4-4) | |
| December 6, 2025 (Saturday) | 7:00 p.m. | Away | Eastern Illinois | Charleston, IL | | W, 82-74 (5-4) |
| December 9, 2025 (Tuesday) | 6:00 p.m. | Home | Culver-Stockton | Hyland Arena | | W, 110-44 (6-4) |
| December 18, 2025 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Western Illinois | Hyland Arena | | W, 92-76 (7-4) |
| December 20, 2025 (Saturday) | 1:00 p.m. | Home | Harris-Stowe | Hyland Arena | | W, 109-52 (8-4) |
| December 23, 2025 (Tuesday) | 2:00 p.m. | Away | Missouri State | Springfield, MO | L, 70-65 (8-5) | |
| January 1, 2026 (Thursday) | 3:30 p.m. | Home | Morehead State | Hyland Arena | | W, 77-64 (9-5) |
| January 3, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Home | Southern Indiana | Hyland Arena | | |
| January 6, 2026 (Tuesday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | SIU-Edwardsville | Edwardsville, IL | | |
| January 10, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Home | Little Rock | Hyland Arena | | |
| January 15, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | Southeast Missouri State | Cape Girardeau, MO |  | |
| January 17, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Away | Tennessee-Martin | Martin, TN | | |
| January 22, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Tennessee Tech | Hyland Arena | | |
| January 24, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Home | Tennessee State | Hyland Arena | | |
| January 29, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | Southern Indiana | Evansville, IN | | |
| January 31, 2026 (Saturday) | 2:30 p.m. | Away | Morehead State | Morehead, KY | | |
| February 3, 2026 (Tuesday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | SIU-Edwardsville | Hyland Arena | | |
| February 5, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:00 p.m. | Away | Little Rock | Little Rock, AR | | |
| February 12, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Tennessee-Martin | Hyland Arena | | |
| February 14, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Home | Southeast Missouri State | Hyland Arena | | |
| February 19, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | Tennessee State | Nashville, TN | | |
| February 21, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:00 p.m. | Away | Tennessee Tech | Cookeville, TN | | |
| February 26, 2026 (Thursday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Eastern Illinois | Hyland Arena | | |
| February 28, 2026 (Saturday) | 3:30 p.m. | Away | Western Illinois | Macomb, IL | | |
| March 4-7, 2026 | TBD | Away | Ohio Valley Conference Championships | Evansville, IN |