WHEATON, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan women's basketball team fell to Wheaton College on Tuesday, Feb. 21 by a final score of 76-67. Junior Molly McGraw led the Titans in scoring with a game-high 23 points on 11-of-26 shooting to go alongside her six rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

With a loss the Titans fall to 17-8 (12-4 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) while Wheaton concluded their regular season with an overall record of 21-4 and a 14-2 mark in the CCIW. The stage is set for the conference tournament with the No. 2 seeded Titans facing-off against the No. 3 seeded Elmhurst Bluejays. Elmhurst finished the season with an overall mark of 19-6 with an 11-5 record in the CCIW. Illinois Wesleyan split the season series with Elmhurst, but defeated the Bluejays on Feb. 15 by a final score of 71-56. Wheaton will play host to the tournament which takes place Feb. 24-25.

The Titans were unable to find their stroke on Tuesday, shooting .343 percent from the floor and .167 percent from beyond the arc.

IWU trailed closely at halftime, 42-39. McGraw and sophomore Maddie Merritt each scored a team-high 12 points in the first half to pace the Titans. Illinois Wesleyan trailed by as many as 11 points in the second quarter before bringing the game within three at the break.

Wheaton pulled away in the second half, outscoring the Titans 17-14 in each of the final two quarters.  IWU maintained a three-point deficit with 3:52 to play in the third quarter, but that was as close as the Titans would get to the Thunder in the second half. A late 7-0 run from the Thunder secured their victory, giving them a 12 point lead prior to a McGraw triple with 19 seconds to play.

Merritt finished the game with 20 points (8-of-8 FT) and four rebounds. Junior Rebekah Ehresman finished with her fifth double-double of the season and second in as many games, scoring 16 points while hauling in 10 rebounds. Ehresman also added four steals to her final tally. Senior Amanda Kelly matched her career-high with eight rebounds. McGraw, Merritt, and Ehresman combined to score 59 of the Titans 67 points on 22-of-50 shooting.

What's Next?
The No. 2 seeded Titans are set to face No. 3 seeded Elmhurst College in the first round of the CCIW tournament. With a win on Tuesday, Wheaton College earned the right to host the tournament, which will take place Feb. 24-25. Tip-off for the Titans first-round game is set for 5 p.m. from King Arena in Wheaton, Ill.