CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Continuing its undefeated streak at home, No. 4 Parkland men's basketball improved to 13-1 with a 68-48 win over Lincoln College JV on Thursday evening. Freshman forward led the Cobras with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Darin Bellinger (12 points) and Ty Walter Jr. (10 points) also scored in double figures.
 
The pivotal run by the fourth-ranked Cobras came in the final three minutes of the first half and the opening seven minutes of the second half. Following a 5-0 run by Lincoln to cut the lead to four with 3:36 remaining in the first half, Parkland closed the half on a 7-0 run, leading 35-24 at the break, and then piled on a 17-6 run to start the second half. Leading by as much as 28 points in the second half, the Cobras won its sixth game this season by 20-plus points.
 
Outscoring Lincoln by 26 points in the paint, 36-10, Parkland's forwards combined for half (34) of the team's 68 total points. The Parkland big men also were active on the glass as the Cobras out-rebounded the visitors 40-30, including 15 on the offensive end.
 
The Cobras defense also lowered its points per game average to 64.4, fifth-best in NJCAA Division II, as they held the Lynx to 31.3 percent shooting, 20.8 percent from three, and forced 21 turnovers.
 
Leading the charge inside was Bruno Williams Jr. with 14 points and seven rebounds. The seventh double-digit scoring performance of the season, Williams Jr. scored all six of his baskets inside the paint to go along with two free throws. In addition to the seven boards, the first-year Cobra also added four takeaways on the defensive end.
 
Joining Williams Jr in double figures, Bellinger and Walter Jr. both were efficient from the field. Bellinger hit four shots, including both three-point attempts, to score six points in both halves while Walter Jr. made five of his six shot attempts to set a new season-high in points. Carter Jeffries and Charles Campbell Jr. finished just below 10 points with nine and eight, respectively.
 
Starting the game on a 5-2 run, Bruno Williams Jr. got Parkland going with five straight points in the first two minutes. After Lincoln responded with a made three-pointer, forward Darin Bellinger put the Cobras back ahead for good with a pair of threes broken up by a transition alley-oop dunk by Charles Campbell Jr.
 
Stretching the lead out to seven points multiple times in the first 10 minutes, Parkland extended its lead to nine points on three different occasions. Leading 28-19 after a Campbell Jr. jumper, the Lynx went on a 5-0 run over the course of a minute. However, the Cobras responded with a 7-0 run to close the half, highlighted by a pair of buckets from Ty Walter Jr. and three more points from Williams Jr.
 
Continuing the run into the second half, the Cobras started the second period on a 17-6 run, including six straight points out of the half. Up 24 points with 12:59 remaining, the Cobras extended the lead to 28 points on a second straight Ty Walter Jr. layup with 8:06 left. Despite a late run by the Lynx, the Cobras held on for the 20-point victory.
 
The fourth-ranked Cobras will play a pair of road games next week, traveling to Rend Lake on Monday, January 14, and Malcolm X on Thursday, January 17.