WHEATON, Ill. – A desperation three banked in off the glass at the buzzer as the Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team was stunned by Wheaton College Saturday night, Feb. 15, at King Arena. The Titans, who trailed by as many as nine in the second half, led by two with three seconds to go, but fell 80-79 in heartbreaking fashion.
A three-point play by junior
Doug Wallen (Champaign, Ill.-Champaign Central) put the Titans in front 70-67 with 3:08 to play, but Wheaton would eventually even the score at 75 all with 53 seconds remaining. From there, a series of free throws saw Illinois Wesleyan pushed ahead by two, 79-77, with 3.5 seconds left on the clock. Wheaton inbounded the ball to Nyameye Adom who after worked his way into the half court before banking in a 38-footer to stun the Titans.
Senior
Charlie Bair (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard West) turned in a career day, scoring 26 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including four three-pointers, and added seven rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal. Wallen also finished in double figures, scoring 14 points and grabbing three rebounds. Sophomore
Matthew Leritz (St. Louis, Mo.-St. Louis University HS) led the Titans with 11 rebounds, while also tallying nine points. Sophomores
Keondre Schumacher (Bloomington, Ill.-University) and
Peter Lambesis (Mt. Prospect, Ill.-St. Viator) each contributed nine points apiece.
Illinois Wesleyan shot 48.3 percent from the floor for the contest, converting 28-of-58 shots. IWU was 5-of-17 from the long line and 18-for-29 at the charity stripe. Wheaton finished with a 49.2 field goal percentage, hit 10-of-26 three-point attempts, and converted 10-of-16 free throws.
The Titans held a 36-34 edge on the glass and outscored the Thunder 38-34 in the paint. Each team recorded nine turnovers apiece, while IWU held a 4-3 edge in steals.
A layup by Wallen gave the Titans a 9-7 lead in the early goings, but Wheaton answered with an 8-0 run to claim a 15-9 advantage with 14:25 to play in the first half.
Illinois Wesleyan's defense tightened up from there, holding the Thunder scoreless for more than four minutes. With Wheaton silenced offensively, sophomore
Cory Noe (Mahomet, Ill.-Mahomet-Seymour) found Wallen for a bucket to spark the Titans. After a turnaround jumper by Wallen, Noe hit a layup and then found Bair for a clutch three-pointer. Bair's triple, his third of the season, reclaimed the lead for the Titans, 18-15, with 10:28 to play in the half.
Over the next five minutes, the Thunder jolted ahead by four before freshman
Cody Mitchell (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles East) came through with back-to-back buckets. A Mitchell layup with 11 seconds to go in the period cut Wheaton's advantage to two, 35-33, at the break.
The second half featured a series of runs, the first of which put Wheaton in front by nine with just under 10 minutes to play. Illinois Wesleyan responded with an 11-0 run of its own to reclaim the lead, but the buzzer beater sent IWU home with an 80-79 setback.
Illinois Wesleyan treks up to Chicago Wednesday night, Feb. 19, for a rematch with North Park University. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside NPU's Gymnasium.
