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Lucas Heflen shooting vs. Yeshiva
Kodiak Creative
67
Neb. Wesleyan NWU 1-1,0-0 American Rivers
73
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 2-1,0-0 CCIW
Neb. Wesleyan NWU
1-1,0-0 American Rivers
67
Final
73
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
2-1,0-0 CCIW
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Neb. Wesleyan NWU 34 33 67
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 38 35 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Hoops Defeats Nebraska Wesleyan to Leadoff SCB Champions Classic

Titans play 13th-ranked St. Joseph (Conn.) tomorrow at 12 p.m.

ABERDEEN, S.D. - The Small College Basketball Champions Classic kicked off with a thriller Friday, Nov. 18, as the 21st-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team fought its way back from a double-digit deficit to overcome Nebraska Wesleyan University, 73-67, at Wachs Arena. 

With the game tied at 60, senior Lucas Heflen (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) pushed the Titans ahead with a triple with 5:36 to play. The three-ball was the first of three by the senior guard in the final five and a half minutes. He later extended IWU's advantage to seven, matching the Green and White's largest of the game, with a triple with 2:40 to go. The clutch shot proved to be the dagger, despite NWU trimming the lead to three with a trey of its own with 13.1 seconds left. Junior Ryan Sroka (Lake in the Hills, Ill.-Huntley) and senior Cody Mitchell (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles East) closed out the win at the charity stripe, lifting Illinois Wesleyan to victory, 73-67.

Heflen, who hit several clutch shots down the stretch, finished with a career-high 22 points to lead the Titans. The senior co-captain hit 8-of-14 shots, including 6-of-12 three-pointers, while also grabbing five boards and adding two assists and two steals over 34 minutes. 

Fellow co-captain Mitchell put up 17 points to go along with a team-high nine rebounds. Sophomore Nick Roper (St. Louis, Mo.-MICDS) added 10 points, and sophomore Marko Anderson (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) tallied nine points off the bench.

It was all Prairie Wolves early, as Nebraska Wesleyan opened up a 9-0 advantage over the first five minutes at Wachs Arena. 

After seeing the deficit grow to double digits, Heflen knocked down a triple on a heady pass from sophomore Pryce Punkay (Champaign, Ill.-Champaign Central). The three, which came at the 13:45 mark, was followed by buckets by Anderson and junior Evan Schneider (St. Louis, Mo.-Ladue) to pull IWU within three, 14-11.

Three-pointers from Heflen and Roper on back-to-back possession evened the score at 19 all before Mitchell's free throws gave IWU its first lead of the morning, 26-25, with just under five minutes until halftime.

The trip to the charity stripe proved to be the turning point for the Green and White, as Roper drilled a three and Mitchell rattled off six points to up the lead to five, 35-30.

A three-point by Sroka lifted IWU to a 38-34 edge at the break. 

In the second half, NWU reclaimed the lead with a three-ball of its own with 13 minutes to play. The Prairie Wolves continued to hang around, but the Titans came back with clutch three-balls from Heflen and Punkay to remain in front, 55-52, with 10 minutes to go. 

Sophomore Hakim Williams (Round Lake, Ill.-Round Lake) pulled down a long defensive rebound and quickly floated a pass ahead of the Nebraska Wesleyan defense for an easy layup by Heflen to increase the IWU cushion to five, 57-52. 

NWU battled back, once again claiming a lead, 60-59, this time via an and-one. After a free throw by Anderson, Heflen and IWU closed out the tight game to secure the first win in SCB Champions Classic history, 73-67.

Illinois Wesleyan returns to action tomorrow, Nov. 19, with a game against No. 13 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.). Tipoff is set for noon inside Wachs Arena.



 
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