NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Junior Colin Bonnett scored a game-winning layup at the buzzer to give the Illinois Wesleyan men's basketball team a 68-66 win over North Central College at Gregory Arena in Naperville, Ill., on Saturday, Dec. 9.
 
With its second straight late-game win, Illinois Wesleyan improved to 7-1 overall and 2-1 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin while North Central slipped to 3-4 overall and 1-2 in the CCIW.
The last time IWU won on the road at Wheaton and North Central in the same season was 2014.
 
The Titans saw a 19-point lead dissipate into a tie game at 66-66 after an Alex Sorenson free throw with 12.7 seconds left. After Sorenson missed his second free throw try, Bonnett snagged the rebound and, after a pair of passes, got the ball back on the right side of the floor and soared into the driving lane for the game-winner as time expired.
 
Bonnett finished with a team-high 15 points, 11 in the first half and the other four in the final 1:22 of the game, while seniors Jaylen Beasley and Brady Rose had 11 points and 10 points, respectively. Rose finished with a team-best six rebounds in a game that saw North Central outrebound IWU, 44-36.
 
"We made a lot of mistakes but we battled back – it's nice to win and learn," IWU head coach Ron Rose told WJBC Radio in a postgame interview. "In the first half our defense was more aggressive. We just weren't as aggressive in the second half and gave them some space, which you can't allow for a talented team.
"Our last three games have been close and being in those situations are making us better and winning the last two have been a confidence-booster for our us."
 
For North Central, Connor Raridon netted 20 points and Sorenson added 15 points with a game-high 14 rebounds.
 
The Cardinals and IWU were tied at 8-8 with 12:05 to go in the first half before the Titans went on a 19-2 run to claim a 27-10 lead with 6:12 remaining. The Cardinals, who shot only 29 percent from the field (8 of 28) in the first 20 minutes, got back within 12 (32-20 at the 3:07 mark) but IWU boosted their lead back to 16 at intermission (39-23).
 
The Titans got the first points of the second half to charge ahead by a game-high 19 points at 42-23 before the Cardinals made an 11-2 run to close to within 10 at 44-34 at the 15:28 mark.
 
It was a 10-point lead at 55-45 before North Central had a 13-5 surge to close to within two at 60-58 at the 5:41 mark.
 
"Brady (Rose) didn't play his best game tonight but we had other guys step up," said Ron Rose, citing junior Jason Gregoire. "Jason had a terrific first half and it was a bright spot for us to see the energy he played with today."
 
What's Next?
Final exams take center stage for the Titans next week and the next basketball action will be on Sunday, Dec. 17 with a 3 p.m. home game against No. 11-ranked Washington U. The Bears are 6-1 and have a Dec. 12 game at Fontbonne.