MONTGOMERY, Ala.- The Ave Maria University men's basketball team earned a key non-conference victory on Thursday evening, defeating the Stillman College Tigers, 78-59, at the SUN-SSAC Challenge in Montgomery, Alabama. The Gyrenes outscored Stillman by a 43-26 margin in the second half, leading Ave Maria to a win over a Stillman program that has played in the NAIA Tournament in each of the past five seasons.

Stillman led for much of the game's first eleven minutes, a stretch that included their largest lead of the day at 14-6 with 14:50 to go. The Gyrenes responded with a major run of their own, scoring 20 of the next 25 points to turn Stillman's eight-point lead into a seven-point edge for the Gyrenes with 6:55 to go in the half. Ave Maria led for the remainder of the opening frame, taking a 35-33 lead into the halftime break. 

It was all Gyrenes in the second half, as Ave Maria pulled away for their eighth win of the season. Stillman never took the lead back from AMU in the final 20 minutes, and a surge in the middle of the half essentially put the game away. Leading by three with 15:04 to go, Ave Maria went on a 17-5 run, turning that three-point lead into a 15-point edge that would never again dip below ten points.

Ave Maria was extremely efficient offensively in the victory, making 51.7 percent of their field goal attempts. This was especially evident in the second half, when the Gyrenes made 16 of their 28 shots, good for a 57.1 percent mark. AMU scored 46 points in the paint in the win, shooting 65 percent from inside the two-point arc.

All three of Ave Maria's top scorers posted double-doubles in the victory. Klajd Kiri had a monster game for the Gyrenes, scoring 24 points on just 13 shots and pulling down eleven rebounds. Matt Gillis added 17 points and ten rebounds, while Houston Culpepper made seven of his nine shots en route to 16 points and ten rebounds. That trio combined for 57 of AMU's 78 points and 31 of the team's 45 rebounds.

The Gyrenes will look to sweep their stay in Alabama on Friday, when AMU plays their second game of the SUN-SSAC Challenge. Ave Maria's opponent will be the Rams of the University of Mobile, who knocked off St. Thomas University in their first game of the Challenge Thursday afternoon. The matchup between two 8-4 teams is scheduled to tip off at 1:15 p.m. local time (2:15 p.m. eastern) in Montgomery.