BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan's five-game season-opening win streak came to a halt with a 74-72 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin loss to Carthage at the Shirk Center on Saturday, Dec. 2.
 
Illinois Wesleyan is 5-1 overall and 0-1 in the league while Carthage is 4-2 for the season and 1-0 in the CCIW.
 
Senior guard Brady Rose had a game-high 24 points while sophomore center Alex O'Neill had a career-high 16 points with eight boards. The Titans made a season-low seven 3-pointers (of 25 tries for a season-low .280 percentage) and the nine free throws and .563 percentage were also season lows.
 
After the game was tied at 7-7 with 14:17 left before halftime, the Red Men led the remainder of the first half, taking their largest lead of seven points at the 3:28 mark (36-29) and leading by five at half (39-34).

Following the break, the Titans put on a 14-6 run to grab a 48-45 lead with 15:44 to play. The three-point lead was IWU's largest of the game, equaled with a 70-67 advantage after a Nick Coleman 3-pointer with 1:58 to play. But the Red Men scored the next six points to snare a 73-70 lead and staved off Titan late chances for the win. The game was tied five times, the last at 67-67, and there were eight lead changes.

Senior Brad Kruse scored 20 points and had a game-high 10 rebounds as the Red Men held a 38-37 rebound advantage in the contest. Junior Jordan Thomas added 16 points and eight rebounds in the win.
 
What's Next?
The Titans play a CCIW road game at Wheaton College on Wednesday, Dec. 6 at 7 p.m. The Thunder is 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the league after a 78-68 home court win over Millikin.