Wheaton, Ill. - The Wheaton men's basketball team picked up a 90-71 victory at home on Friday night in the opening round of the 2019 Lee Pfund Classic. Wheaton will face UW-River Falls Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. in the tournament's championship game. UW-River Falls defeated Franklin College in Friday's first game.

Nyameye Adom led the Thunder with 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field. He added five assists and five rebounds. Tyson Cruickshank scored 23 points, making five three-pointers with seven rebounds and three assists. Cade Alioth recorded a "double-double" with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Gavin Hawkins scored nine points. Thomas Lipscomb grabbed 10 rebounds for the hosts.

Wheaton shot 46.2% (30-of-65) from the field, including 38.7% (12-of-31) from three-point range. Principia shot 45.3% (29-of-64) from the field, including 18.8% (3-for-16) behind the three-point arc. Wheaton shot 78.3% (18-of-23) at the free throw line and the Panthers had a 41.7% (10-for-24) effort at the charity stripe. Wheaton out-rebounded Principia 50-34, including a 14-9 edge on the offensive glass for the Thunder. 

Wheaton jumped out to an early 13-6 lead in the first five minutes against the Panthers. The largest lead of the first half for the Thunder was a 14-point bulge at 30-16 with 9:00 remaining before halftime. The hosts held a 44-34 lead at halftime. Cruickshank led the Thunder in the opening half with 16 points in 12 minutes of action. Adom added 12 first-half points.

Wheaton led by double digits for the majority of the second half. Wheaton's largest lead of the game was a 24-point advantage at 88-64 with 3:26 remaining in regulation.