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Men's Hoops Team Topples Illinois Wesleyan
Box Score
ELMHURST, Ill. - The Elmhurst College men's basketball team, ranked 12th in the latest D3hoops.com poll, moved to 12-3 overall and 2-2 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin following a 90-77 win over Illinois Wesleyan University.
The win over the Titans was Elmhurst's third straight dating back to last season. It marks the first time the Bluejays have ever won three consecutive over Illinois Wesleyan.
The Bluejays led from start to finish and never trailed in the contest. Elmhurst jumped out to a 31-13 lead before Illinois Wesleyan began to chip away. The Titans pulled to within seven points (43-36) at halftime.
Elmhurst built a 12-point advantage with 8:30 to play, but the Titans responded with a 10-1 run to pull to within three points (71-68) with 6:15 left. A pair of free throws by Brent Ruch (Farmer City/Blue Ridge) followed by a Jared Hintzsche (Hiawatha/Kirkland) jumper gave the Bluejays a 78-71 lead with 4:30 to play.
Illinois Wesleyan's Sean Johnson knocked down a trey to cut the lead back down to four, but Elmhurst's Dustin Bainter (Macomb/H.S.) answered with a 3-pointer of his own. The Bluejays built their lead back to 10 points and sealed the win by hitting 7-of-8 free throws in the final minute.
After struggling with their shooting in Wednesday's loss to Carthage, the Bluejays rebounded to shoot 54.5 percent (30-of-55) from the floor. Elmhurst was deadly from downtown, hitting 72.7 percent (8-of-11) of its 3-point attempts. The Bluejays shot 88 percent (22-of-25) from the foul line.
Illinois Wesleyan shot 41.7 percent (25-of-60) from the floor. The Titans were red hot from downtown, hitting a season-high 13 3-pointers (13-of-25 for 52 percent). Illinois Wesleyan struggled from the foul line, hitting only 58.3 percent (14-of-24) of its attempts.
Elmhurst dominated on the glass, outrebounding Illinois Wesleyan 43-27. The Bluejays also scored 21 points off 11 Titan turnovers.
Ryan Burks (Manito/Midwest Central) fell two points shy of matching his career-high by scoring 29 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Burks was a perfect 14-of-14 from the foul line and added six rebounds and four assists. Ruch and Matt Ryder (Bettendorf, Iowa/Pleasant Valley) each finished with 16 points. Ryder shot 6-of-9 from the floor, including 4-of-4 from long distance. Ruch added nine boards, four assists, and four blocks in the win. Hintzsche came off the bench to record a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Titans were led by Johnson's career-high 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Johnson hit 7-of-10 from downtown. Brett Chamernik added 15 points and seven boards while Jordan Morris scored 12. Travis Rosenkranz totaled 10 points and seven assists in the loss.
Elmhurst travels to North Park University on Wednesday, January 23. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
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