TAMPA, Fla. – Saint Leo men's basketball traveled to the Bob Martinez Athletics Center Wednesday night and ran away with a 71-46 win over Tampa, which marked the season sweep of the Spartans. 

Kyran McClure scored a game-high 20 points, adding a perfect 10-for-10 night from the free-throw line where Saint Leo (14-8, 8-6 SSC) went 17-for-19 for an 89.5-percent night. Isaiah Hill finished one point shy of McClure with 19 points while Yalen Reed turned in 11 points. Gintaras Bartaskas came just shy of cracking the double-digit plateau with nine points shooting a 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. The Lions finished the road trip 26 points in the paint and 26 points off turnovers. Saint Leo hauled in 35 total rebounds led by Hill's six defensive boards. 

Tampa (6-16, 3-11 SSC) was led by Pat Bacon with 15 points while Brent Duncan added 13 points. 
 
Both teams would exchange leads and play a close game for the opening seven minutes before the Spartans held a five-point gap, moving it to nine points, 15-6 with 11:04 to play. Three straight free throws from Kyran McClure tied things at 16 before Yalen Reed's cut to the hoop and a wide-open left-handed slam pushed the Green and Gold ahead, 18-16 with 8:03 on the clock. Saint Leo pushed its lead to double-digits with 1:33 to play on McClure free throws before holding a 14-point lead at the break, 37-23.
 
The Lions came out of the break and continued to push the pace and used six minutes of the second half to get to a 20-point lead on a Gintaras Bartaskas three-pointer, 50-30. Saint Leo would run out to its largest lead of 30 with 7:56 to play on a three from Wade Coomer before the game would reach the final of 71-46.
 
Beyond the Boxscore

• The win snapped a three-game skid and improves the season record against the Spartans to 2-0.
• Saint Leo shot 89.5% from the free-throw line (17-19), tying the second-best performance from the line.
• Kyran McClure went 10-for-10 from the line and improved his made free throws to 172, which now leads the nation.

Up Next
Saint Leo returns home to host Rollins at 7:30 p.m. inside the Marion Bowman Activities Center Saturday, Feb. 8.
 
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo men's basketball, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Don't miss out on the 2019-20 Basketball Pride Pass, now on sale. The Saint Leo Basketball Pride Pass gives each fan admission to all home men's and women's basketball events. For more information visit here.