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BLOOMINGTON, IL - NCAA Basketball - #6 Illinois Wesleyan vs. UW-Stout at Shirk Center on November 29, 2025. UW-Stout defeated #6 Illinois Wesleyan, 66-58. (Photo by Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative)
Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative
69
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 9-3,1-2 CCIW
57
Hamilton Ham 2-9,0-0 NESCAC
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
9-3,1-2 CCIW
69
Final
57
Hamilton Ham
2-9,0-0 NESCAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 29 40 69
Hamilton Ham 25 32 57

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Titans Close NYC Trip with Win Over Hamilton

Titans jump to 9-3 on the season

NEW YORK CITY - The Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team completed its trip to New York City with a 69-57 win over Hamilton at Max Stern Athletic Center on the campus of Yeshiva University Wednesday, Dec. 31. The Titans used a strong second half to down the Continentals and improve to 9-3 on the season. Hamilton slipped to 2-9 with the setback.

Sophomore Noah Cleveland (Normal, Ill.-Normal Community) turned in another monster performance. He collected his eighth double-double of the season with 22 points and 14 rebounds. Cleveland converted 8-of-14 shots from the floor, including two three-pointers, while adding in two steals, two assists, and a block. Junior Mason Funk (Normal, Ill.-University High) and senior Karlo Colak (Glencoe, Ill.-New Trier) tacked on 11 points apiece. 

Junior Casen Lawrence (St. Louis, Mo.-Westminster Christian) continued to be a spark off the bench with nine points on three triples, while junior Jackson Niego (Western Springs, Ill.-Lyons Township) dished out a career-high eight assists with six rebounds, two blocks, and four points.

IWU's defense caused Hamilton fits, as the Continentals shot 32.1 percent from the floor (18-of-56), 24.2 percent from distance (8-of-33), and went 13-for-21 from the free throw line. The Titans overcame a slow start to shoot 39.0 percent on the day (23-of-59). The Green and White went 8-of-28 from distance and 15-of-27 at the stripe.

The Titans won the rebounding battle, 46-38, and used that to compile a 10-4 lead in second-chance scoring. IWU also held the upperhand in points off turnovers (16-7), bench scoring (21-19), fastbreak scoring (15-4), and points in the paint (24-12).

Hamilton came out strong, opening up an 11-3 advantage five minutes into the game before Illinois Wesleyan got itself going. The scoring spurt came on the back of strong defense as Cleveland intercepted a pass and then bullied his way through three defenders for a bucket. Funk followed with a swipe and score of his own to cut the deficit in half, 11-7, to force a Hamilton timeout at the 13:31 mark.

Cleveland hit a three-pointer and junior Brady Kuehl (St. Louis, Mo.-Parkway West) converted off a dish from Funk to pull IWU within one, 13-12, with 11 minutes left in the half. 

Colak drove down the lane and hit Niego on a kickback for a three from the wing to give IWU its first lead of the day, 15-13. The Titans moved ahead by three on a Kuehl free throw, but a 9-0 run by the Continentals drove Hamilton ahead, 25-19.

The Green and White broke the run with a three-pointer from Colak. The bucket proved to jump-start IWU's own run, as the Titans closed the half with 10 straight points. After Cleveland converted free throws, Niego found Funk for two. Good ball movement and a heady pass from Funk led Cleveland on a reverse finish. Colak closed the first-half scoring with a free throw to push the Green and White ahead, 29-25, at the break.

The Continentals came out with the first punch in the second half, using back-to-back three-pointers to reclaim the lead, 31-29. 

Cleveland answered with a long jumper from the corner and Niego later kicked to Lawrence for a wing trey to swing the score in favor of IWU, 34-31. Another dish from Niego, this one to Cleveland, was followed by another Lawrence three-ball to stretch the lead to eight, 39-31. 

Lawrence's hot hand continued as the junior striped the Continentals and started the Titans off in transition. Quickly hitting Cleveland down the middle of the court, the sophomore one-handed a pass to a cutting Funk for a one-handed slam. The big play upped the lead to double-digits, 41-31, and forced a Hamilton timeout with 14:50 to go.

Illinois Wesleyan expanded its lead to as many as 15 around the nine-minute mark before the Continentals put together one last push. Cleveland put a stop to that late, swatting a shot to sink the comeback effort and seal the Titans victory.

The Green and White roll back into College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play Saturday, Jan. 3, as IWU's month-long road trip is complete. The Titans will host Carroll University inside the Shirk Center for a 4:15 p.m. tip. The game is the second leg of a doubleheader with the IWU women's basketball team.

 
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