BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The fifth-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team will host Wheaton College this Saturday, Jan. 25, in the Titans' annual Pink Zone game. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. and will be the second part of a double feature with the IWU women's basketball team.
    Illinois Wesleyan carries a 15-2 record into Saturday's showdown, having completed the first half of College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play with a 7-1 mark. The Titans most recently surged to an 82-52 victory over Augustana College inside the Shirk Center, Jan. 22. Meanwhile, Wheaton travels to Bloomington with a 3-14 record and is in search of its first conference win of the season (0-8). The Thunder, which are amid an 11-game losing skid, were held off by Millikin University, 76-73, in King Arena, Jan. 22.
    A live stream with Eric Stock and Joel Swanson on the call as well as live stats will be available. Links can be found on the men's basketball schedule page of IWUsports.com.

PINK ZONE PARTY: Illinois Wesleyan will host Wheaton Saturday as part of its annual PinkZone game. Clothing with this year's PinkZone logo will be sold throughout the day while a silent auction will take place, as IWU raises money for Mary Kate Kroesch, a local high schooler battling a rare and aggressive form of sarcoma.

ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR THE STUDENT-ATHLETES: At halftime, IWU will recognize it's school record 10 College Sports Communicators Academic All-America honorees from the 2023-24 academic year. Eight of the 10 will return in person as Annalese Chudy (women's cross country/track & field), Quinn Clifford (men's golf), Ethan Lowder (men's swimming), Lauren Huber (women's basketball), Lexi Onsrud (women's golf), Griffin Pohl (men's golf), Emma Thorman (women's golf), Lauren Wong (women's track & field) will receive their Academic All-America awards. Bobby Beaubien (men's golf) and Ethan Hart (men's lacrosse) will also be honored, but will not attend the recognition.

AGAINST THE THUNDER ALL-TIME: Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton will battle for the 141st time Saturday night. IWU holds an 88-53 lead in the all-time series, which dates back to the 1946-47 season. Despite the Titans' stronghold on the all-time series, the Thunder have come out victorious in eight of the past 14 meetings.
IWU won the first meeting of the regular season, Jan. 4, escaping King Arena with an 85-80 overtime triumph. The win marked the Titans' third straight against the Thunder. Nick Roper went off for 26 points and 10 rebounds, while Josh Fridman posted 17 points, five boards, and five assists in the win.

50-PIECE: The Titans rolled to a 30-point win over Augustana Wednesday, Jan. 22, outscoring the Vikings 53-29 in the second half. IWU's 53-point half marked the second time this season that the Green and White have scored 50-or-more points in a half. The first occurrence took place Dec. 29, 2024 against LeTourneau, where IWU scored 50 in the second half en route to a win.
    Illinois Wesleyan's 53 points against Augustana are the most by the Titans in a half since putting up 53 at Augustana Jan. 28, 2023. Despite the strong second half, IWU's attempt to overcome a double-digit halftime deficit fell short, 89-80.

TAKE WHAT'S FREE: Illinois Wesleyan's aggressive offensive play and willingness to attack the rim has led to a lot of trips to the free throw line this season. In fact, IWU is averaging 25.4 free throws per contest, the 11th-most across Division III. More importantly however, the Titans are ninth nationally with 18.0 free throws made per contest.

IT'S FRIDMAN: Since assuming the starting point guard role, freshman Josh Fridman has come into his own, even taking his game to another level in CCIW play. Through eight conference games, the rookie is averaging 10.6 points per game. He is the team's third-leading scorer in league contests and is second on the team with 22 assists (2.8 per game).
Around the conference, Fridman leads the league in free throw percentage (96.9), is tied for seventh in assists (2.9 apg) and sits 22nd in scoring.

TWO BIGS, BETTER THAN ONE: The five-man platoon of seniors Harrison Wilmsen and Marko Anderson  has been a crucial component to Illinois Wesleyan's success this season. Together, the duo is averaging 17.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game and poses a consistent challenge for the opposition. Anderson is IWU's top rebounder with 6.6 boards per game, including a team-high 49 offensive rebounds, to go along with 8.1 points per game. Wilmsen's numbers sit at 9.4 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.

BENCH BOSS: In his 18th season leading his alma mater, Ron Rose has compiled a 340-160 overall record. His career mark includes 182 CCIW wins, the most of any active head coach in the conference.
    The Titans won the 2013, 2014, 2022, and 2024 CCIW titles outright and shared the 2018 regular season championship with Augustana. Illinois Wesleyan claimed the 2021 CCIW Championship in a COVID-shortened season as well as the regular season title last season.

HARD TO COME BY: Through 17 games this season, Illinois Wesleyan has established itself as one of the stingiest defenses in all of Division III. The Titans are ranked 16th nationally in field goal percentage defense, limiting opponents to 38.0 percent. IWU is allowing just 68.3 points per game, a mark which is slotted 78th-best across Division III.

POLLING STATION:  Illinois Wesleyan is one of 28 programs that have appeared in at least 100 D3hoops.com Top-25 rankings. In fact, the Titans' 197 appearances in the weekly poll are eighth-most all-time as well as the most in the CCIW. The Titans are currently ranked No. 5 in the poll as of Jan. 20.

6 FOOT 8 INCHES OF ROPE: Illinois Wesleyan senior Nick Roper took his play to another level in the Titans' triple overtime win over North Central, Jan. 11. Roper poured in a career-high 29 points over 48 minutes of play, while adding nine rebounds and three assists.
    In addition to a season-high, Roper posted the highest point total by a Titan since Matthew Leritz scored 31 against Wheaton Feb. 12, 2022. Since the calendar turned to 2025, Roper is averaging 20.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.0 steal per game. Roper ranks fourth in the CCIW in scoring at 18.1 points per game and sits tied for third in rebounding (6.8 rpg).

WHO NEEDS WINDEX?: There's no need to clean the glass when the Titans are taking the court, as IWU has established itself as one of the best rebounding teams in the country. The Green and White hold a +10.1 rebounding margin, 14th-best nationally, and have averaged 42.94 rebounds per game (17th nationally). Illinois Wesleyan is also ranked in the top-50 in offensive rebounding, averaging 13.29 boards on the offensive end per contest, a mark that Bob Spear would surely like to see higher, but one that ranks 47th across Division III.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Titans enjoy one of the greatest athletic venues in NCAA Division III. The Shirk Center has been home to more than 750 Titan basketball games between both the men and women. The men hold a 313-68 record on their home floor (.821 win pct.).

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan wraps up a three-game homestand this Wednesday, Jan. 29,  against Carroll University. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside the Shirk Center. Members of the Titan track & field programs will be recognized at halftime.