CHAMPAIGN, Ill -- - Tommy Drew watched Immanuel Seymour's first two games from home, battling a serious case of influenza.

When he returned to the sideline Monday night, he found himself coaching in a vastly different atmosphere -- and relying on a familiar script.

Adam Allen scored 18 points, three of his teammates also reached double figures and Seymour used its trademark defense to turn the game and pull away from Our Savior's for a 62-49 victory in the Illinois and Indiana Cross State Classic.

To Drew, it felt like old times.

"The last two games I thought our offense was further along than our defense,": he said. "I think our defense has caught up more to where we were last year and you know you're going to need it to play like that every night to win games."

It's bad news for the rest of Indiana, though.

Immanuel Seymour (3-0) outrebounded the Eagles 39-27 and forced twice as many turnovers as it committed in the second half while also outscoring Our Savior's in the paint and off the bench in the school's first non-conference matchup of the year.

And after an uncharacterstic first half, Drew understood why his players might have been a little unnerved.

"I'm not going to lie, I was really excited to be back," said Drew, he tested postive for Influenze three days before the season opener. " I missed the guys, I missed being a part of the team and it was really exciting to be back."

He was also excited, like his players, to be playing on a national radar in Champaign.

But Immanuel Seymour did exactly what they needed to do. They drew fouls against Jeremiah Perkins turning him into a non-factor. They turned up the pressure against Jace Easley, making uncomfortable with the basketball. And although Conor McCaffrey led the Eagles (3-1) with 22 points, he was just 8 of 22 from the field, and the focal point of Seymour's defense was switched onto him in the second half. Jace Easley scored 15 points, while Perkins was only able to score 4.

"It was a frustrating night," Our Savior's coach Phillip Heppe said. "It was a great opportunity to learn. I'm disappointed in our loose balls in the second half, but give credit to them."

The game also had a much more instense atmosphere than the previous games played by both teams. Largely because of the raucous applause and loud cheers coming from the benches in what amounted to a draw for almost 30 minutes.

Seymour forward Jonathan O'Patrick started the decisive stretch by making two free throws with 2:51 left in the 3rd quarter. That broke a 30-30 all tie and spurred Seymour to six straight points. After Our Savior's made a 3-pointer, Seymour scored five more points and then took control with another run, this time 9-0.

When it ended, Seymour led 55-41 with 5:41 left, and the Eagles never seriously challenged again.

BIG PICTURE

Our Savior's: After last week's scare against Pleasant Plains, the Eagles wanted to bounce back with a strong performance. Heppe's team certainly accomplished that much. It just didn't pull off the kind of signature win it envisioned -- but that may only be a matter of time.

Seymour: Seymour is the #1 team in all of Indiana. They've won their first three this season. They have enough offensive firepower, defensive tenacity and expericence to play with -- and beat -- anyone in the country at this point.

STAT PACK

Our Savior's: McCaffrey was the only one to get any sort of shot creation going, he had to create his own shots and get open shots for the rest of his teammates, something he can do, but it can be utterly exhausting and isn't a sustainable way of winning big basketball games.

Seymour: Davion Mitchell had 15 points and eight assists, while Collin Butler scored 14.

THEY SAID IT

Our Savior's: "They fight like dogs for 32 minutes," Perkins said. "When you make mistakes, even the littlest mistakes, they cost you a lot."

Seymour: "We kind of expected it," Mitchell said when asked about the contributions of some of the guys off the bench. "Those guys are in the gym the same amount of time as us, so we kind of expect that from those guys. It wasn't really a surprise for us."

UP NEXT

Our Savior's: Hosts Mount Pulaski on Friday.

Seymour: Prepares for Friday's showdown with Louisville Christian in Indy.