DECATUR, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team erased at 13-point second-half deficit to escape the Griswold Center with a 76-74 win over Millikin University Wednesday night, Feb. 5. The two-point victory saw the Titans extend their win streak to three games, while also improving to 14-6 overall and 8-3 in College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play. Millikin slipped to 4-17 on the season and 1-11 in league play.
A three-pointer by sophomore Cory Noe (Mahomet, Ill.-Mahomet-Seymour) with 5:50 to play gave Illinois Wesleyan its first lead of the game. From there, the Titans and Big Blue played to a 72-72 tie before sophomore Matthew Leritz (St. Louis, Mo.-St. Louis University HS) knocked down a bucket in the post to put IWU ahead 74-72 with 1:54 to go.
Millikin evened the score with 1:21 remaining on a well-contested fadeaway jumper late in the shot clock, but IWU made the most of a few trips to the charity stripe to complete the 76-74 comeback win.
Leritz dropped 21 points and grabbed five rebounds to lead the Titans, while junior Charlie Bair (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard South) added 15 points and tied for the team lead with six rebounds. Sophomore Peter Lambesis (Mt. Prospect, Ill.-St. Viator) finished with 14 points and freshman Luke Yoder (Bloomington, Ill.-Central Catholic) added 11.
As a team, Illinois Wesleyan finished 28-for-55 from the floor (50.9 percent) and converted four three-pointers. Meanwhile, Millikin cooled off offensively after a strong start to finish with a 47.5 field goal percentage. The Big Blue converted 10 three-pointers, including six in the first half. The Titans lost the rebounding battle, 40 to 30, but dominated the paint, 46 to 26, and fastbreak points, 16 to 9. IWU also turned MU over 18 times and notched nine steals, while committing just nine miscues.
After opening up a 6-0 lead, the Big Blue doubled the Titans up 20-10 over the first seven minutes of play. A three-point play by Noe cut Millikin's edge to single digits, but Millikin's hot three-point shooting saw IWU trail 46-33 at halftime. The Big Blue knocked down six first-half triples, while the Titans went 0-for-7 from the long line en route to a 13-point advantage at the break.
Illinois Wesleyan got things going offensively in the second half, using a 55.6 field goal percentage over the final 20 minutes to erase the double-digit deficit and secure the win.
Illinois Wesleyan returns to action Saturday night, Feb. 8, for a Senior Night clash with Augustana College. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. and will follow the IWU women's basketball team's game against Augustana. Prior to the game, the Titans will recognize and honor senior Bernie Coderre and Alex O'Neill.
