MONTICELLO, Ark. (Interstat) — Justice Moore scored 27 points and Arkansas-Monticello rode a quick start to a 92-59 victory over Lyon in a non-divisional men’s NCAA Division II basketball game Monday at Steelman Fieldhouse. The Boll Weevils led 46-29 at halftime and never let visiting Lyon mount a serious second-half threat before a crowd of 654. Arkansas-Monticello improved to 1-0.

Moore set the tone early. He made a layup 36 seconds into the game and hit a 3-pointer at 17:46. Marvin Schindler made two 3-pointers in the opening five minutes as Arkansas-Monticello built an 11-0 lead before Dre’Yon Quattlebaum made a free throw for Lyon at 16:15. Moore answered with another 3-pointer, and Quattlebaum and Trevion Ross scored on consecutive possessions to help Lyon close to 14-5. Schindler and Moore then made jumpers, and Moore hit a 3-pointer at 11:46 to push the lead to 22-10. Quattlebaum hit two 3-pointers later in the half, but Aiden Cilladi scored on a layup and a 3-pointer, and Josh Smith made two free throws as the Boll Weevils stayed in control. Landen Hill made a tip-in and two 3-pointers in the final 3:24, including a 3-pointer with 43.1 seconds left that gave Arkansas-Monticello a 46-29 halftime lead.

Arkansas-Monticello scored 92 points from 68 possessions for an offensive rating of 135.0. The Boll Weevils finished with 12 offensive rebounds, three assists, three blocks, 13 turnovers and 14 fouls. They held a 32-18 advantage in points in the paint, scored 15 points off turnovers and added eight fastbreak points. Lyon scored nine points off turnovers and seven fastbreak points. Arkansas-Monticello scored 46 points in each half, while Lyon scored 30 before halftime and 29 after.

Moore was the top performer for Arkansas-Monticello and finished with 27 points, one rebound and four assists in 31 minutes. Aiden Cilladi added 10 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a block in 20 minutes, while Landen Hill had 10 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a block in 26 minutes. Marvin Schindler scored 16 points with four rebounds and two assists in 32 minutes. Ethan Kennedy contributed eight points, one rebound and two assists in 15 minutes; Felix Smedjeback had six points, three rebounds, three assists and a block in 19 minutes; Josh Smith added seven points, three rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes; Jace Sullivan had two points, six rebounds and two assists in 13 minutes; Edy Rantz scored four points with two rebounds in three minutes; and Dillon Dettmering had three rebounds in eight minutes.

Lyon opened the second half with a layup from Camron Williford and later cut the deficit to 55-44 on Karlin Hardy’s 3-pointer with 15:28 remaining. Hardy made four free throws and a 3-pointer during that stretch, and Kaloyan Hristov added a stepback 3-pointer. Arkansas-Monticello responded with a decisive run. Felix Smedjeback hit two 3-pointers, Moore converted two layups and a stepback 3-pointer, Ethan Kennedy scored twice inside and Marvin Schindler made two jumpers as the Boll Weevils pulled away. Arkansas-Monticello led 74-49 after Schindler’s jumper with 8:52 left and stretched the margin to 92-57 on Edy Rantz’s layup with 56.6 seconds remaining. Trevonne Horsley made two free throws with 1.7 seconds left for the final margin.

Arkansas-Monticello will face Augustana (S.D.) and Wayne State (NE) in Little Rock, Ark., then host Ark. Baptist, Northeastern State and Ecclesia. The Boll Weevils will visit Southern Arkansas, host Henderson State, visit Arkansas Tech and Ouachita Baptist, and host Harding. The upcoming schedule includes two games in Little Rock, Ark., and five home dates at Steelman Fieldhouse.