The Youngstown State men's basketball team controlled a battle for first place in the Horizon League from the tip and beat Milwaukee 87-58 on Thursday evening at Beeghly Center.

The Penguins now own sole possession of the top spot in the conference standings with three games remaining with a 13-4 mark in Horizon League play and a 21-7 overall record. YSU's 21 wins set the school's Division I record for most wins in a season. Milwaukee dropped to 18-9 and 12-5, and it joined Northern Kentucky and Cleveland State as teams one game back of the Penguins in the loss column.

YSU graduate transfer Adrian Nelson had a momentous night individually as he scored his 1,000th career point and grabbed his 1,000th career rebound. He also had three thunderous dunks worthy of highlight shows, and he scored a game-high 19 points. Dwayne Cohill scored 18 points, Bryce McBride scored 16, and Malek Green posted 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

It was the second straight time on their home court that the Penguins disposed of a Horizon League contender. On Feb. 4, YSU topped Northern Kentucky 74-56. Tonight, Youngstown State led by double digits for the final 24:34 and had a lead of at least 20 for the final 10:58.

Cohill hit a 3-pointer on the first possession of the night, and YSU dominated from that point forward. The Penguins made seven 3s and scored 20 points off turnovers in the first half to take a 46-33 lead at the break. They then showed their authority in the second half by scoring 22 points in the paint and holding the Panthers to 25 points in the final 20 minutes.

Youngstown State won by 29 despite shooting 43.8% from the field. The Penguins made 10 more field goals, seven of which were 3-pointers, and two more free throws than their challengers from Milwaukee. The Penguins had scoring edges of 32-6 off turnovers, 17-10 on second-chance points and 20-2 in transition.

YSU went 10-for-30 from beyond the arc while Milwaukee was 3-for-19, and the Penguins were plus-10 in turnover margin. The Panthers shot 40.7%, and YSU's defense kept them out of sync for most of the night.

Myles Hunter's 3 gave YSU an 18-9 lead just over seven minutes into the game, and it gave the Penguins four quick triples in the game. Milwaukee got no closer than six the rest of the night.

Youngstown State took its first double-digit lead of the night at 21-11 when a Cohill steal led to a three-point play with 12:04 on the clock. Cohill got to double digits in the scoring column on a floater at the 10:56 mark, and he assisted on an alley-oop by Nelson with 8:30 left that gave YSU a 27-19 advantage.

The Penguins took their first of three 13-point leads in the opening half when McBride hit a 3 to make the score 38-25 with 3:43 on the clock. They matched that margin at 42-29 at the 1:25 mark on a 3-pointer by Nelson that gave him 11 first-half points, and Cohill hit a mid-range jumper in the final seconds to give YSU a 46-33 edge at the break.

While seven first-half 3-pointers helped YSU take its 13-point halftime lead, the Penguins scored 16 of their first 18 points in the second half in the paint.

Nelson scored the first four points, and he had his second highlight-reel dunk of the night when he slammed it home off a backboard pass from McBride 50 seconds into the half. He then scored his 1,000th career point on another dunk that put the Penguins up 60-42 with 14:35 remaining. YSU took its first 20-point advantage when Green scored 35 seconds later to make it a 62-42 difference.

McBride hit back-to-back 3-pointers to put YSU up 71-46 with 9:12 left, and the margin was at least 20 for the remainder of the triumph. YSU took 29-point leads at 81-52, 83-54, and the final tally of 87-58.

Youngstown State will try to stay atop the standings on Saturday as it celebrates Senior Day in Beeghly Center. Tipoff against Green Bay is set for 2 p.m.