BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- The No. 17-ranked Illinois Wesleyan women's basketball team defeated Millikin University by a final score of 78-54 on Wednesday, Feb. 14. Senior Molly McGraw led the Titans with 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting alongside a career-high five assists, four rebounds, and two steals. McGraw's five assists bested a mark of four which she previously reached nine times.

With a win the Titans improved to 20-3 overall on the season with a 13-1 mark in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW). Following a loss, Millikin fell to 7-16 with a 2-12 record in conference action.

Illinois Wesleyan shot .478 from the floor on 33-of-69 shooting compared to a .426 shooting performance from the Big Blue. Neither team found much success from behind the arc with the Titans shooting 3-of-20 and Millikin converting on just four attempts. IWU out-rebounded Millikin 34-30 which included a 14-7 advantage on the offensive glass. The Titans forced the Big Blue into committing 28 turnovers which they turned into 38 points in transition.

In just her second start of the season, junior Nina Anderson scored 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting while remaining active on the glass with six rebounds. Senior Rebekah Ehresman was active in all facets of the game scoring 12 points alongside seven rebounds, six assists, and five steals. Senior Kelsey Walsberg led the bench in scoring with eight points and freshman Raven Hughes added six points, five rebounds, and two blocks.

The Big Blue kept things tight in the first, holding a 15-14 lead over the Titans in the final minute of the quarter. However, back-to-back lay-ups from Ehresman gave the Titans an 18-15 lead heading into the second. An 11-1 run in the ensuing quarter gave IWU a nine point lead thanks to 10 points from McGraw.

Up just four at the start of the second half, a pair of 3-pointers sparked a 12-0 run from Illinois Wesleyan to force Millikin's head coach, Lori Kerans, to call a time-out down 47-31. The Titans extended their lead to as many as 24 in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter with late game lay-ups from Walsberg and freshman Anna Lowis.

Millikin was led in scoring by Yanni Sadler with 12, followed by nine from Devin Curry. Sadler led the team with four assists. Jordan Hildebrand and Lauren Moses each collected seven rebounds to match Ehresman for the game-high.

Prior to the game, Kerans was honored with the Titan Spirit Award by Illinois Wesleyan head coach Mia Smith and athletic director Mike Wagner. Kerans announced on Monday that this will be her final season in blue after coaching at Millikin for the past 32 seasons.

What's Next?
Illinois Wesleyan heads north to Kenosha, Wis. for a 5 p.m. showdown with Carthage College at Tarble Arena on Saturday, Feb. 17. Carthage is 17-6 with a 10-4 mark in the CCIW following a Wednesday night victory over North Central by a final score of 92-56. The Titans defeated Carthage by a final score of 77-68 in their home opener.