BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - A 44-point second half was enough to lift the Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team to a 70-56 victory over North Park University in College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play Wednesday evening, Jan. 15. The Titans trailed the Vikings 32-26 at the half, but outscored them by 20 points in the second period to come out victorious on the celebration of "The Last Game."
With the win, Illinois Wesleyan improved their record to 10-5 (4-2 CCIW) while North Park dipped to 2-13 (0-6 CCIW).
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Keondre Schumacher (Bloomington, Ill.-University HS) three-pointer with 8:33 to play tied the score at 47 all, erasing North Park's lead that stood at as many as nine and got the Titans going. Junior
Doug Wallen (Champaign, Ill.-Champaign Central HS)Â knocked down buckets on back-to-back trips down the floor to go ahead by four, 51-47.
The Vikings quickly trimmed the Titans' lead to one before a 7-0 IWU run spanning just over a minute put Illinois Wesleyan in control. A layup by sophomore
Peter Lambesis (Mt. Prospect, Ill.-Mt. Prospect) was followed by a five-point spurt from freshmanÂ
Luke Yoder (Normal, Ill.-Central Catholic HS). The freshman nailed a three-pointer on a kickout by junior
Charlie Bair (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard South HS) and then sunk a jumper to give the Titans a 60-52 edge.
From there, Yoder and Lambesis cashed in at the free throw line to put the Vikings away, 70-56.
Three Titans scored in double-figures, with Wallen leading the way at 16 points and the duo of Schumacher and Yoder adding 15 points each. Bair grabbed 11 boards while scoring eight points of his own.
IWU shot 42.2 percent from the field while North Park finished at 37.1 percent. On second chance points, the Titans had a 13-8 advantage over the Vikings.
The Titans will travel out of state for their next game, a CCIW match versus Carroll University. This game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. tipoff time, as the second half of a doubleheader with the IWU women's basketball team.
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