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Bloomington, IL - November 14 - NCAA Basketball - #16 Illinois Wesleyan vs Illinois College (Photo by Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative
Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative
78
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 7-3,1-2 CCIW
76
WashU WU 8-1,0-0 UAA
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
7-3,1-2 CCIW
78
Final
76
WashU WU
8-1,0-0 UAA
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 31 47 78
WashU WU 33 43 76

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Funk & Cleveland Fuel Titans Past No. 4 WashU

Titans hand Bears their first loss of the season

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - A putback by junior Mason Funk (Normal, Ill.-University High) beat the buzzer and sophomore Noah Cleveland (Normal, Ill.-Normal Community) put together a career day to lift the Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team to a 78-76 victory at fourth-ranked WashU Thursday afternoon, Dec. 18. The win snapped a two-game skid for the Titans and moved IWU to 7-3 on the year heading into the holiday break. The Bears perfect start to the year was halted as WashU slipped to 8-1.

After a back-and-forth first half, the Bears bolstered their lead with a strong return to the court out of the break. WashU used two quick buckets, including a triple, to drive ahead, 38-31. The home team's advantage grew to as many as nine as Connor May drilled a three-pointer for a 50-41 lead at the 14:48 mark. 

Junior Casen Lawrence (St. Louis, Mo.-Westminster Christian) answered with a triple and Funk hit another moments later. Cleveland's defensive rebound sent the Titans off in a 3-on-2 in transition, with senior Karlo Colak (Glencoe, Ill.-New Trier) finding Funk for the corner three-ball. A tip-in through contact by Cleveland the next time down the floor capped off an eight-point swing that saw the Green and White pull within one, 50-49, with 12:18 left to play.

The Bears pushed ahead with yet another three-pointer to reclaim a four-point cushion, 53-49, but four straight points from Cleveland leveled the score at 53 with just over 11 minutes remaining.

The teams went point for point over the next three and half minutes. Cleveland scored seven points and Colak added a bucket, while the Bears used seven free throws and just one shot from the floor to knot the score at 62 all.

Junior Jackson Niego (Western Springs, Ill.-Lyons Township) converted a free throw and Cleveland knocked down two to give IWU a 65-62 lead. A timely deflection turned into a steal from Cleveland and paved the way for a Funk driving layup to catapult the Titans in front, 67-62, into a WashU timeout.

A pull-up jumper temporarily stopped the IWU run, but an and-one by Cleveland kept the visitors in the lead, 70-64. 

The Bears cut the Titan lead to one twice, with the last coming on a pair of free throws by Yogi Oliff with 2:15 on the clock. The next time down the floor, Colak fed Cleveland in the post, but the big man kicked it right back out for a Colak triple to regain a two-score lead, 75-71, with a tick over two minutes to go.

WashU mounted one last comeback, using two more Oliff freebies and a May layup to tie the game at 76 with around eight seconds to play. 

Going the full length of the floor, Colak carved through the lane but saw his shot attempt fall off the rim. Cleveland's putback caught iron, but Funk came soaring in straight down the lane for a tip-in to secure the win, 78-76, at the buzzer.

Cleveland put together a monster effort, posting a career-high 36 points on 13-of-20 shooting with a 2-for-4 performance from beyond the arc. His 36-point effort marks the second 30-point game by a Titan this season (Mason Funk - Dec. 3 - at Carthage) and is the highest scoring game since Bryce Dolan put up 37 versus Ohio Wesleyan Nov. 18, 2015. Cleveland collected his sixth double-double of the year with 12 rebounds, while also adding a block and an assist. 

Funk and Colak also hit double figures. Funk tallied 15 points and four rebounds, while Colak finished with 13 points, four boards, and a team-high five assists. 

Illinois Wesleyan shot 45.3 percent from the floor overall. The Titans were 8-for-24 from distance and 12-of-21 at the stripe. WashU, which entered the contest as one of the most potent and efficient offenses in Division III, was held to 26-of-54 shooting (48.1 percent) and 10-of-23 from three-point range (43.5 percent). The Bears converted 14-of-22 free throws, going 12-for-18 in the second half alone. 

The Green and White won the turnover battle, 17-7, and capitalized to a tune of a 22-8 lead in points off miscues. IWU also held leads in second-chance scoring (12-10) and fastbreak points (17-10). WashU owned a 41-31 lead on the glass along with a 32-30 edge in points in the paint. The Bears also outscored the Titan bench, 23-9. 

Illinois Wesleyan rides the win into its holiday break as the Green and White's next game is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 29, at Yeshiva University in New York City. The Titans and Maccabees will tip at 7:30 p.m. ET at the Max Stern Athletic Center.

 
 
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