2005-06 Pantagraph Articles
Randy Reinhardt stories courtesy of the Bloomington Pantagraph
IWU closes out eventful season on a positive note
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
BLOOMINGTON - Records set. Milestones reached. Trophies earned.
The Illinois Wesleyan basketball team returned home Sunday from Salem, Va., and the NCAA Division III Final Four to wrap up quite an eventful season.
The Titans defeated Amherst, 71-68, Saturday in the national third-place game. It was Wesleyan's fourth top three finish in the past 11 seasons.
"These kids put up with me for four years so they deserve a lot of credit," IWU coach Scott Trost said of his eight seniors. "Our goal was to win the national championship. We would like to have that (81-79 semifinal loss to Virginia Wesleyan) game over, but you can't."
IWU seniors Keelan Amelianovich and Adam Dauksas both set career records as the 25-7 Titans won 25 or more in a season for just the fourth time in school history.
Amelianovich set the Titans' career standard with 252 3-pointers and broke his own single-season record with 97 3-pointers.
Dauksas is IWU's career assist record holder with 579 and set the single-season mark of 204.
Amelianovich capped his Wesleyan career as the No. 7 scorer in school history with 1,590 points. And his 596 points this season are the sixth highest total ever by a Titan.
"No one had that ego," Amelianovich said of the team's success. "Everybody was a team player. That helped us so much through all the ups and downs."
Dauksas ranks 10th with 1,475 points and fourth at 208 3-pointers.
Amelianovich and junior Zach Freeman (519 points) became just the second teammates to reach the 500-point milestone in the same season. Chris Simich (559) and Bryan Crabtree (534) accomplished the feat in 1995-96.
Freeman will enter his senior season as the No. 31 scorer (1,149 points) and the No. 12 rebounder in school history (591).
"It's amazing," Freeman said. "I'm so proud of everyone. It's real tough to know I'll never step on the floor with these guys again."
Wesleyan finished at 70.7 percent from the free throw line, marking the 34th consecutive season the Titans have connected on at least 70 percent of their free throws.
IWU captures third
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
SALEM, Va. - During a high-energy defensive drill 17 minutes before tipoff Saturday, the smiles returned for the Illinois esleyan basketball team.
It was not a fast or an easy process.
Nor was disposing of Amherst.
Yet the No. 11-ranked Titans stormed out to an early 16-point lead and never trailed while holding off No. 4 Amherst, 71-68, in the third-place game of the NCAA Division III Final Four at the Salem Civic Center.
"I'm very proud the way we bounced back from a disappointing night. This makes it a lot easier to swallow," IWU coach Scott Trost said of Friday's excruciating 81-79 semifinal loss to eventual national champion Virginia Wesleyan.
"I'm very proud of what they've accomplished, how hard they've worked and what type of people they are. Third place out of 400 teams is not bad. They can leave here very proud."
The Titans (25-7) capped their fourth trip to the Final Four in 11 years with a third-place trophy for the third time. Only the 1995-96 (28-3) and the 1996-97 (29-2) teams won more games in school history.
"We were pretty depressed, but later in the night (Friday) we got it together a little bit," senior Keelan Amelianovich said. "Seeing each other in the morning helped a lot."
So did a 10-0 start keyed by four Zach Freeman points and an Amelianovich 3-pointer. A Jason Fisher 3-pointer extended the Wesleyan lead to 28-12 at the 8:21 mark of the opening half.
"We were on a mission. We wanted to win the championship so it was hard to get up for third," said Fisher, who scored a career-high 16 points in his final game as a Titan. "We wanted to play for pride and go out on a positive note."
Amherst (28-4) also finished fourth in 2004.
"We did everything we could to change things up, and we still got off to a rough start," said Lord Jeffs coach Dave Hixon. "But we adjusted to what they were doing and had a shot at the end. It's easy in a consolation game to fold. It could have been a 30-point game."
Amherst connected on just 4 of its first 24 shots and all four came from 3-point range. The Jeffs did not find the net from inside the arc until the 7:56 mark.
A Dan Wheeler 3-pointer shaved the IWU lead to 30-24, but the Titans pushed their edge back to 13 by halftime at 44-31.
IWU enjoyed a 56-42 cushion after an Amelianovich 3-pointer with 15:20 remaining. A 14-3 Amherst spurt brought the Jeffs within 59-56 at the 10:18 mark.
"It was a lack of focus and they stepped it up," said Amelianovich, who was 5 of 8 on 3-point tries on his way to a game-high 21 points and a berth on the all-tournament team. "We regained our focus and carried it out the rest of the game."
But not without some drama.
An Andrew Olson jumper from the wing with 48 seconds showing trimmed the Wesleyan lead to 69-68 before Fisher nailed two clutch free throws at the 23-second mark.
After Amherst misfired on two 3-point attempts, Freeman missed the front end of a one-and-bonus free throw with 4.8 seconds left.
The Jeffs rebounded and rushed the ball down court. But John Bedford bobbled a pass and did not regain control in time to toss up a shot before time expired.
"We're disappointed," said Amherst senior John Casnocha. "That's just how the cookie crumbles, I guess."
Freeman capped a brilliant weekend with 19 points and seven rebounds. IWU's junior center connected on 20 of 25 shots in two games.
"Zach and Keelan have been phenomenal the last three weeks," Trost said. "Fish might have played his best game of the year and he defended 22 (Bedford) well."
Amelianovich led all rebounders with eight as the Titans held a 36-33 rebounding margin.
After dropping a tight semifinal game to Wittenberg of Springfield, Ohio, Friday, Hixon was impressed with the physical strength of Division III basketball in the Midwest.
"In general, these were a lot bigger kids than we played all year," said the Amherst coach. "I don't know if we grow them smaller in New England because the winters are so cold or what."
The Jeffs launched more than half of their shots from 3-point territory, going 13 of 34 (38 percent) from long range and 23 of 66 (35 percent) overall.
"They shoot the three very well," Trost said. "We anticipated them shooting a lot of threes."
Wheeler sank six 3-pointers and paced Amherst with 20 points. Bedford chipped in 14 and Tim McLaughlin 11.
"We relied on the three and shot it well," said Hixon. "The difference between third and fourth is not what this is about. I'm sure both coaches talked about pride, shaking off the disappointment of last night and showing what your program is about."
Entering the game at 26 percent on 3-point attempts for the season, Fisher was 4 of 5 as the Titans knocked down half of their 18 from beyond the arc.
Wesleyan shot 57 percent in the first half and 53 percent overall (27 of 51).
Amelianovich was joined on the all-tournament team by Daniel Russ and Dane Borchers of Wittenberg and Virginia Wesleyan's TonTon Balenga and Brandon Adair.
Final Four notes: IWU guard Fisher relaxes in last game
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
SALEM, Va. - Jason Fisher had one final game as an Illinois Wesleyan basketball player Saturday at the Salem Civic Center.
The thought did not unnerve the Titan guard. Instead, it relaxed him.
"Relaxation is the perfect word for it," Fisher said. "I think the biggest thing for me was knowing it was my last one."
Fisher scored a career-high 16 points in his IWU finale to provide a crucial spark in the Titans' 71-68 victory over Amherst in the third-place game of the NCAA Division III Final Four.
A 26 percent shooter from 3-point range entering the contest, Fisher calmly drained 4 of 5 from beyond the arc and 5 of 6 shots overall.
"I was really relaxed in warmups. I probably hit every shot I took," said the Delavan native. "I felt it going into the game it was going to be one of my nights."
Fisher said the Titans were able to find motivation after a tough semifinal loss to Virginia Wesleyan Friday.
"When you play a third-place game, a lot of people say 'I don't care. Give me third or fourth. It's not first no matter what.' But it's going out with a win," he said. "Especially when you're a senior, it makes it that much more special. Two (tournament) teams in Division III go out with a win and we're one of them. We can take pride in that."
Fisher also converted two critical free throws with 23 seconds left for the game's final points.
"Fish hit some shots with confidence. I'm very proud of the way he played tonight," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "Fish will be the first one to tell you sometimes I'm not the easiest guy to play for. He hung in there and persevered."
Fisher will marry fiance Emily Sparks in July.
"I definitely have to get a tape of this game and show it to my (future) kids," he said. "It's one to keep for sure."
Two All-Americans
Wesleyan seniors Adam Dauksas and Keelan Amelianovich both were named to the five-player All-America first team of d3hoops.com Saturday.
Other first team members were Player of the Year Kyle Myrick of Lincoln University, Brandon Adair of national champion Virginia Wesleyan and Albion's Brandon Crawford.
Augustana's Rick Harrigan was a second team selection, while Eureka native Chris Martin of Elmhurst made the third team. Virginia Wesleyan's David Macedo was named Coach of the Year.
Reception honors team
Hundreds of Wesleyan supporters packed a Wyndham Hotel ballroom Saturday evening to honor the team.
"I might even miss Coach yelling at me," Dauksas joked to the crowd. "Scott and I are on the same level now. I guess I don't play for him anymore."
"I'm going to miss seeing all these guys at 4 o'clock (for practice)," said senior Steve Schweer. "But my couch is looking pretty nice."
IWU athletic director Dennie Bridges said another reception for the team will be held March 28 at Shirk Center.
Returning home
The IWU travel party is flying from Roanoke, Va., to Chicago this morning and will bus from Chicago to Bloomington.
The estimated time of arrival at the Shirk Center main parking lot is 1 p.m.
IWU misses last three, now aims for 3rd
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
SALEM, Va. - Capitalizing splendidly and repeatedly on a height advantage over his Virginia Wesleyan defender, Illinois Wesleyan senior Keelan Amelianovich connected on 12 of his first 18 shots Friday at the Salem Civic Center.
Attempt No. 19 - as well as the Titans' hopes for a berth in the Division III national championship game - both came up agonizingly short.
Amelianovich's twisting 3-point attempt with three seconds left bounced off the front of the rim, and Virginia Wesleyan rebounded to secure the Marlins' 81-79 Final Four semifinal victory before a crowd of 2,665.
"It was a deep shot. I just couldn't get it there," Amelianovich said. "If I was a little closer, I think I would have been able to get a better shot."
No. 7 Virginia Wesleyan (29-3) won its 27th straight game and will meet Wittenberg for the national title today at 4 p.m. No. 11 IWU (24-7) will face Amherst at 1:30 p.m. for third place.
"We didn't execute the last play like we wanted to," Titans' coach Scott Trost said. "They defended it well."
A Matt Arnold driving basket with 41 seconds left brought IWU within 81-79. With the Marlins running down the clock, Amelianovich deflected a pass to Arnold to give the Titans the ball back at the 15-second mark.
With two fouls to give, Virginia Wesleyan fouled with 11.7 and 6.7 seconds left.
IWU wanted to inbound the ball to Adam Dauksas but was forced to throw to Zach Freeman.
"It was a play we've practiced and we just didn't execute. The ball was supposed to go down low to Adam so Zach could get a screen on my guy," Amelianovich said. "We got it in to Zach and had to do a dribble handoff, which is always tough going away from the basket. They played some really good defense the last six seconds."
"We didn't want to give up a three. We thought they would go to 32 (Amelianovich) and they did," Marlins' coach David Macedo said. "He missed one finally."
Amelianovich finished with 28 points and Freeman 27 as IWU rolled up statistics that normally are associated with winning.
The Titans shot 60 percent from the floor (Amelianovich and Freeman combined for 25 of 35 shooting), outrebounded Virginia Wesleyan, 30-24, and committed only nine turnovers.
"Defense," lamented Trost. "We can't stop them. Plain and simple."
The Marlins had a mere five turnovers and got 29 points from 6-foot-5 junior post player Brandon Adair. Virginia Wesleyan also was 9 of 22 from 3-point range while limiting IWU to 3 of 9 from beyond the arc.
"I thought Illinois Wesleyan was fantastic. They're a great club. It could have went either way down the stretch," Macedo said. "We made one more stop. I'm proud of the grit our kids showed."
An Amelianovich fadeaway gave IWU its last lead at 77-76 at the 2:30 mark. Virginia Wesleyan's Ton Ton Balenga then fired in a 3-pointer from the top of the key with Arnold in his face.
"My team believed in me. They told me to keep shooting," Balenga said. "They were focusing on Brandon. That opened it up for me."
Adair's bank shot from the lane with 47 seconds showing extended Virginia Wesleyan's edge to 81-77.
The Titans held a 61-53 lead after a Cory Jones basket with 12:05 remaining as part of IWU's 46 points in the lane.
"We knew the key was to get the ball in to the post," Freeman said. "We got good looks inside. But it all comes down to one possession and we didn't execute."
A 12-4 Marlins' run capped by a Balenga steal and basket tied the score at 65-65.
Tyler Frantin hit four 3-pointers on his way to 19 points. Balenga added 13 for Virginia Wesleyan, which finished at 51.7 percent (30 of 58) from the floor.
Jones chipped in 12 points, while Dauksas was 1 of 7 from the field and matched a season low with three points. Dauksas' five assists gave him the school single-season record with 199.
"I let these guys down," Dauksas said. "I didn't play up to their level. Look at my line. I didn't do anything else to help us. I'll take the blame."
"It doesn't fall on Adam," countered Trost. "It doesn't fall on one player. We win or lose as a team. We lost this thing together."
VWU star Adair proves tough for Titans to stop
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
SALEM, Va. - Defending Brandon Adair was a priority for the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team Friday.
Yet IWU's efforts on Virginia Wesleyan's 6-foot-5 junior turned out to be a liability in the Titans' 81-79 loss Friday in the NCAA Division III Final Four at the Salem Civic Center.
"Our game plan was to stop Adair and we did a poor job. That falls on me," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "He's a heckuva player. He got position. And we didn't rotate out well and (Tyler) Fantin hit some big threes."
Adair was 10 of 16 from the field and 9 of 12 at the free throw line for 29 points to send the No. 7-ranked Marlins into today's 4 p.m. championship game against Wittenberg.
"I need to establish the inside game to set up our outside game," Adair said. "I hit my first few shots, but it wasn't just me. The whole team hit shots down the stretch."
Two 3-pointers from Ton Ton Balenga in the final three minutes also were key as the Marlins (29-3) won their 27th straight game.
"Brandon is our man. He carries us," said Balenga. "I need to be the person to open up the paint for him."
Virginia Wesleyan coach David Macedo worries his team relies on Adair too much at times.
"A lot of times I come away shaking my head," Macedo said. "We ride him it seems like every play. He came up big play after play."
National rankings
IWU senior point guard Adam Dauksas entered the Final Four ranked seventh nationally in assists at 6.5 per game.
Titans' senior forward Keelan Amelianovich is eighth in 3-point percentage at 46.2.
Lending support
Despite traveling nearly three times as far as Virginia Wesleyan, IWU supporters outnumbered their counterparts by more than a two to one margin.
The Titans' cheerleaders and pep band also were on hand.
NABC shuns Titans
Curiously, no IWU players were part of the 24-man Division III All-America team released Friday by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
The first team included Adair and Chris Braier of Lawrence. Rick Harrigan of Augustana and Wisconsin-Whitewater's Jeremy Manchester were part of the second team, while Larry Welton of Aurora and Amherst's John Bedford made the third team.
IWU shoots its way into Final Four
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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APPLETON, Wis. - The Titan players climbed the ladder one by one, step by step. The fact they had the energy to do so was nothing short of amazing.
At the top of the ladder was a net that symbolized a step Illinois Wesleyan has been yearning to travel for four years.
The net came down Saturday at Alexander Gymnasium. And the Titans are moving up to the Final Four.
Summoning a reserve it did not appear to have, IWU played a final five minutes for the ages to claim a 113-99 victory over relentlessly frenzied Puget Sound to claim the NCAA Division III Tournament sectional championship before a jubilant pro-Wesleyan crowd of 787.
"With five minutes to go at a timeout, I looked down and everybody was gasping for air," said senior guard Matt Arnold. "But our goal ever since we got here was to go to Salem. We were five minutes away. We can be tired all next week."
No. 11-ranked IWU (24-6) will meet No. 7 Virginia Wesleyan (28-3) Friday at 7 p.m. in a Final Four semifinal at the Salem Civic Center in Salem, Va. It will be the Titans' fourth Final Four appearance in 11 seasons.
"It's a gamut of emotions," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "I'm so proud of these guys and happy for the seniors. We've been through a lot together. It was a tough road, but we hung in there.
"It's a tribute to our kids and their will to win."
With Puget Sound's hounding pressure dictating a pace that had many in the crowd tired simply from watching, the Titans held a perilous 95-94 lead after the Loggers' Chase Curtiss nailed a 3-pointer at the 3:55 mark.
IWU senior point guard Adam Dauksas answered with a critical 3-pointer, and Andrew Freeman scored off a Dauksas assist for a 100-94 Titans' lead.
A Dauksas steal led to a Zach Freeman rebound basket and after a Puget Sound missed 3-point try, Arnold's two free throws with 1:28 showing extended the Wesleyan advantage to 104-94 and launched the IWU faithful into chants of "Sa-lem, Sa-lem."
"I thought about all the times I came in early to shoot," Dauksas said of fighting the exhaustion of 36 minutes played. "You've got to dig a little deeper and phase out the pain. This is special. We came together and we did it."
Puget Sound's Antwan Williams tossed in the last of his team's 11 3-pointers to cut the Titans' lead to 108-96 at the 48-second mark.
But Wesleyan was permitting no miracle rally. Shortly after senior Mike McGraw dribbled out the final few seconds, the Titans erupted into a midcourt celebration.
"I've got great players and great kids," Trost said. "They were physically exhausted, but they battled through it. We were dragging. We were physically and mentally tired."
No. 14 Puget Sound bowed out at 23-5 with two of its losses coming to Wesleyan.
"Give Illinois Wesleyan credit. We expect to wear every team down. Usually teams tire," said Loggers' coach Eric Bridgeland. "Every look they had went down for three or four minutes, and when they did miss they got some timely offensive rebounding that hurt us."
Co-captains Dauksas and Keelan Amelianovich scored 26 points each, and Zach Freeman and Arnold added 19 each as the Titans miraculously shot 75 percent from the field (24 of 32) in the second half while committing just six of their 14 turnovers.
"It's tough to press a team that has the best guard in the country," Bridgeland said of Dauksas, whose 13 assists were one short of a career high. "We played a helluva game. But when we needed a couple of defensive stops, we didn't get them."
Dauksas was 4 of 9 from 3-point range and Amelianovich 3 of 6 to tie Korey Coon's school record for career 3-pointers at 245.
"A team like Puget Sound is the most intensity at the Division III level you will face for 40 minutes and a full 90 feet (of the court)," Amelianovich said. "It was an all-around gutty performance by the whole team. We had big rebounds, big passes, big shots. It's an amazing feeling to get to this step."
Arnold's 19 points were a season high and one short of a career high. He was 4 of 5 from beyond the arc and played 31 minutes off the bench with starting guard Jason Fisher being saddled with early foul trouble.
"This is indescribable," Arnold said. "I'm so happy for everyone."
"Matt was fantastic. He gives us another ballhandler," said Trost. "He was the one in the huddle saying 'we are not going to lose this thing.' He's a tough competitor.
"Adam, I love the kid. He just makes plays. Keelan played great. He got some big steals when we were struggling defensively."
Zack McVey scored 21 of his 27 points in the second half for the Loggers. Chase Curtiss was 5 of 16 from beyond the arc and finished with 26 points.
The Titans won the rebounding battle, 42-28, including a 22-10 second-half margin. Zach Freeman handled 10 rebounds, Chris Jones seven (to go with his 12 points) and Dauksas six.
Both sides held leads as high as eight points in a wild opening half. IWU's 10-2 start was fueled by a Bridgeland technical just 2:49 into the contest.
Zach Freeman was whistled for a technical of his own just 50 seconds later. Freeman was called for a foul and then got the technical for waving off the referee.
With IWU's Cory Jones and Fisher already having picked up three fouls, Puget Sound pulled out to a 34-26 advantage.
The Loggers were ahead 49-46 and holding for the final shot of the first half when Amelianovich turned a steal into a basket at the two-second mark to send the Titans into the locker room down a point.
Wesleyan ended at 62.5 percent from the floor (40 of 64) and 78.6 percent from the free throw line (22 of 28). Puget Sound connected on 34 of 72 shots for 47 percent.
Titans one win away from Final Four
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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APPLETON, Wis. — Muggy. Cramped. People standing in every corner straining to see the action.
Alexander Gymnasium may have reminded Illinois Wesleyan fans of their former basketball home, Fred Young Fieldhouse.
Yet just as it appeared Lawrence was about to add another chapter of glory on its 77-year-old barn of a home court Friday, the Titans stole the magic.
Down 13 points with nine and a half minutes remaining, IWU mounted a determined charge that produced an electrifying 71-68 victory over No. 1-ranked Lawrence in a sectional semifinal of the NCAA Division III Tournament before a deafening standing room only crowd of 1,100.
“Us seniors didn’t want it to be our last game,” said reserve guard Matt Arnold. “I think we wanted it more than them at the end. It was a great game.”
No. 11-ranked IWU (23-6) will play No. 14 Puget Sound today at 7 p.m. for the sectional championship and a berth in next weekend’s Final Four in Salem, Va. The Loggers knocked off Augustana, 92-86, in the opening semifinal.
The last undefeated team in men’s college basketball, Lawrence (25-1) shot a sizzling 72.7 percent to hold a 12-point halftime lead and enjoyed a 58-45 margin after a Ryan Kroeger 3-pointer.
“I’m proud of my kids. They’re resilient. They fought back in a tough environment,” said Wesleyan coach Scott Trost. “With the tough crowds in our league, our kids are used to it. It was our never say die attitude, our belief we’re going to win.”
A Zach Freeman basket and two Adam Dauksas driving buckets cut the Titans’ deficit to 58-51. The Vikings extended their edge back to 10 before 3-pointers from Arnold and Keelan Amelianovich and a Freeman inside basket off an Amelianovich assist brought Wesleyan within two.
Lawrence’s Andy Hurley scored and Freeman sank two free throws before Freeman missed the front end of a one-and-bonus. Amelianovich got a hand on the long rebound, Freeman snared the loose ball and fired a pass to Arnold on the wing.
Arnold’s huge 3-pointer presented the Titans with their first lead (64-63) since 2-0 at the 4:01 mark.
“I was pretty pumped up. It was a great play by Keelan,” said Arnold, who also nailed two key free throws with 9.4 seconds left. “I don’t think I’ve ever been as energized.”
“Matt has hit some big shots this year,” Trost said. “He’s a good shooter and a great free throw shooter. He’s got a lot of guts.”
The final four minutes belonged to Freeman. IWU’s junior center came up with a steal, owned the backboards along with teammate Cory Jones and scored eight of Wesleyan’s final 10 points to preserve the victory.
“I was getting good position, crashing the boards offensively and defensively,” said Freeman, who turned in game highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds. “I sensed they were a little tired. We knew we had to execute offensively and defensively.”
Lawrence coach John Tharp said of Freeman, “No. 30, down the stretch we struggled with him. I think they wore us down.
“We did what we were supposed to do to win. We executed a majority of the time. But we didn’t make plays the last eight minutes. The first half we were so care free, but we tightened up a little bit. We battled tooth and nail and just didn’t get it done.”
The Vikings riddled IWU with 16 of 22 shooting and 9 of 13 accuracy from 3-point range in the first half. An off-balance 3-pointer from Kyle MacGillis with two seconds left sent Lawrence into the locker room basking in a 45-33 lead.
“We wanted to put more pressure on the ball. We let them run their offense,” said Trost. “I challenged our guys at halftime. I told them you’re not going to beat anyone if you let them shoot 73 percent.”
Amelianovich scored nine in the first half and finished with 14.
“Amelianovich kept them in, and then their bigs started to take over a little,” Tharp said. “They kept on coming and started winning loose ball wars. We had to be sharp against this team for 40 minutes.”
Arnold finished with 10 points, while Jones contributed nine points and eight rebounds. The Titans shot 44.6 percent from the field and hit only 5 of 21 from beyond the arc.
IWU overcame Lawrence’s 13 total 3-pointers by outrebounding the Vikings, 36-22.
Kroeger paced Lawrence with 15 points on 5 of 11 3-point shooting. MacGillis chippd in 13, Hurley 11 and All-American Chris Braier had 10 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
The Wesleyan-Puget Sound game is a rematch of a Dec. 29 contest that saw the Titans outlast the Loggers, 104-87, in Santa Barbara, Calif.
“They are very good. It will be a totally different game. We have to adjust how we play,” said Trost. “We are familiar with their style. It will be a game of turnovers. We have to put this one behind us and focus on Puget Sound.”
“If we limit our turnovers,” Arnold said, “we have a pretty good chance.”
Puget Sound-Augustana
Playing from behind the entire second half, No. 13 Augustana (23-6) got as close as six points in the final minute.
No. 14 Puget Sound (23-4) forced 21 Vikings’ turnovers with its full court pressure defense.
“We started great. Our guys understood what was coming and handled it well,” Augustana coach Grey Giovanine said. “But being pressured over time has an impact. You have to take great care of the ball against that system.”
The Vikings played without starting point guard Drew Wessels (pneumonia), and lost leading scorer Rick Harrigan to fouls with 2:40 remaining. Harrigan was called for his fourth foul on a charge and got his fifth a few seconds later when given a technical for arguing.
“He (Wessels) has been our emotional and spiritual leader all year. We definitely could have used him,” said Harrigan, who led Augustana with 21 points. “They get you going really fast, and you fall into what they’re doing. They get you doing things you’re not used to doing.”
Dain Swetalla had 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Vikings, while Nate Swetalla added 14 points and Jay McAdams-Thornton 10 points and 10 rebounds. Ryan DeLong paced Puget Sound with 18 points.
“That’s how we like it,” Loggers’ coach Eric Bridgeland said of the hectic pace and the 79 total free throws. “They are so structured and so big, in a half-court game we don’t have a chance.”
With field goal and free throw shooting nearly even, the difference came from beyond the 3-point arc. Puget Sound was 10 of 22, while Augustana connected on just 5 of 19.
Dauksas leads IWU into Sweet 16
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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WHITEWATER, Wis. - Adam Dauksas took the Kachel Gym floor Saturday with the confidence of four years of success, not the insecurity of two games' worth of struggles.
That became painfully obvious - for Wisconsin-Whitewater anyway - almost immediately in a second-round NCAA Division III Tournament game.
Dauksas scored 14 of Illinois Wesleyan's first 26 points on his way to a career-high 31 as the Titans parlayed a fantastic first half into an 85-71 victory over host Whitewater before a vocal crowd of 1,725.
"I felt it early on," said Dauksas, who had been 2 of 18 from the field in IWU's previous two contests. "I've been off the last couple games. I've been getting into Shirk (Center) before class to clear my mind and get shots up. You can't worry about missing shots. You just have to play."
The 11th-ranked Titans (22-6) advance to next weekend's sectional round and will play No. 1-ranked Lawrence (25-0) Friday at a sectional site to be determined today. Augustana will meet either Occidental or Puget Sound in the other Sweet Sixteen matchup Friday.
With the NCAA unlikely to consent to flying three teams to the West Coast to play at Occidental or Puget Sound, the sectional appears headed to Appleton, Wis., Rock Island or Shirk Center.
The NCAA may not allow Lawrence to play host to the sectional because of sub-par facilities.
"Adam really stepped up. I've been hard on him lately," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "He hit some big shots. He got us off to a great start and the whole team fed off him."
IWU took a quick 9-2 lead on 3-pointers from Dauksas, Keelan Amelianovich and Jason Fisher. Dauksas' third 3-pointer gave the Titans a 17-6 lead and his fourth without a miss presented Wesleyan with a 26-11 advantage with 12:25 remaining in the opening half.
"We wanted to focus on controlling Dauksas. We absolutely did not get that done," said Whitewater coach Pat Miller, whose 15th-ranked squad bowed out at 23-6. "They came out with great intensity. They were obviously on a mission.
"I thought they were more physical. They took the action to us, and we didn't respond very well."
A Craig Anderson 3-pointer brought the Warhawks within 33-22. But IWU closed the half with a 14-5 spurt that featured the final three of Dauksas' 21 first-half points for a 47-27 halftime bulge.
"When you feel like that, you have to let it fly," said Dauksas, who finished 9 of 13 from the field, 6 of 9 from beyond the arc and 7 of 12 at the free throw line. "I thought we were in control the whole game. It's always fun to silence a big crowd like that."
Amelianovich added three 3-pointers and finished with 20 points.
"I was very comfortable taking a second role to him," Amelianovich said with a smile in Dauksas' direction at the postgame news conference. "There is no doubt about his ability to step up in big games."
IWU pushed its lead as high as 23 points (51-28) before Whitewater began chipping away.
Eight straight Warhawk points sliced the Titans' advantage to 57-44 with 12:09 remaining. Whitewater crept as close as nine at the 5:01 mark.
A Cory Jones basket off a Dauksas assist and an Amelianovich 3-pointer with 3:32 remaining extended the IWU edge to 74-61, and the Warhawks did not get closer the rest of the way.
"We got it down. But give them credit. They responded," said Miller. "We got beat by an outstanding team. If there are many better teams, then we're going to have to reassess our whole recruiting."
The Titans shot 68 percent from the field in the opening half and 59.5 percent (25 of 42) overall.
"It was an all-around great effort," Trost said. "We shot the ball extremely well, and defensively we were very good."
Whitewater shot 36.4 percent in the first half and 44.1 percent overall. The Warhawks hurt themselves with 14 of 25 free-throw shooting.
Melvin Williams paced Whitewater with 16 points, while leading scorer Jeremy Manchester was 1 of 10 from the field and had nine points.
Zach Freeman chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds for IWU. Cory Jones had nine points and a game-high nine rebounds to help the Titans outrebound Whitewater, 31-27.
A coach who emphasizes limiting turnovers, Trost could even excuse his team's season-high 24.
"I'll take 24 turnovers and a 14-point win any time," he said.
Freeman a force as Titans advance
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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WHITEWATER, Wis. — Illinois Wesleyan coach Scott Trost wanted the basketball to go inside on the first Titans’ possession Friday.
It wasn’t long before passing inside looked like the best option on every possession.
After all, that’s where Zach Freeman was residing.
Struggling from the perimeter, IWU frequently sought out Freeman and the junior center delivered with 29 points and 10 rebounds in the Titans’ 81-68 victory over Carroll in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament at Kachel Gym.
“The game plan was to get the ball inside and make things happen inside-out,” said Freeman, who hammered home four of Wesleyan’s five slam dunks. “We started off a little cold, but that’s when you have to be even more patient. Nobody wants to play defense for 35 seconds.”
The 11th-ranked Titans improved to 21-6 and will meet No. 15 Wisconsin-Whitewater today at 7 p.m. with the winner heading to the sectional round next weekend. Whitewater eliminated unranked DePauw, 76-68, in Friday’s nightcap.
“Zach played outstanding. We didn’t know if they had guys who could guard us inside,” IWU coach Scott Trost said. “Zach was a huge difference. Thank God for Zach. Other than him, we didn’t shoot the ball well.”
Freeman was 13 of 19 from the floor, a critical success rate considering the rest of the Titans were 19 of 52 (36.5 percent). IWU hit just 4 of 20 from 3-point range.
“We all knew we had to attack the basket or find the open man,” Freeman said. “We got some touches inside and got some easy buckets.”
Making its first NCAA appearance in school history, No. 17 Carroll bowed out at 21-5.
“Freeman was tough. We gave him a little too much space to operate. He’s long, left-handed and a lot of things we don’t see every day in our league,” Carroll coach David Schultz said. “Their length, strength and depth of bodies gave us some problems. They hurt us in some areas (inside) we haven’t been hurt in previously.”
Wesleyan extended a 34-30 halftime lead to nine on a Keelan Amelianovich three-point play and a spectacular alley oop dunk from Freeman on a fast-break pass from Adam Dauksas.
“Zach was big,” said senior teammate Cory Jones, holding the “big” for emphasis. “He came up with rebound after rebound, dunk after dunk. He was phenomenal.”
Carroll fought back to a 45-44 deficit before Dauksas nailed a big 3-pointer for his only basket of the game.
As they did the first half as well, the Pioneers kept Wesleyan from pulling away throughout much of the second half. Carroll got within 60-56 on a Jason Scheper basket with 7:06 remaining.
Freeman, who was one point shy of matching his career high, responded with two quick baskets and the Titans’ lead would not slip below seven points the rest of the game.
“That was the final dagger when it was 60-56 and we were not able to convert a couple times,” Schultz said. “They are a mature team that got a second life in the NCAA to make some things happen. We had to play at the top of our game to win this.”
The Titans then scored six of the next seven points on two Chris Jones baskets and a Jason Fisher reverse layup for a 70-57 cushion with 3:31 to play.
“They are scrappy and tough to guard. They run a lot of good stuff,” said Trost. “They make you work. I really didn’t feel comfortable until the horn went off.”
Amelianovich added 13 points and connected on two 3-pointers to move into second place on IWU’s career 3-pointer list with 237. Cory Jones chipped in 10 points and Andrew Freeman had eight in 10 productive minutes off the bench.
Dauksas matched a career high with nine rebounds and Cory Jones grabbed six as the Titans outrebounded Carroll, 50-36. The fast-paced contest saw Wesleyan toss up a season-high 71 shots.
Scheper paced Carroll with 19 points, while Nate Drury contributed 15 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
Andrew Freeman scored five straight points and his blocked shot set up an Amelianovich 3-pointer that gave IWU a 34-24 lead with 3:10 left in the opening half. The Titans settled for a 38-34 margin at the break.
Carroll was 26 of 67 from the floor for 38.8 percent.
Victory in hand, Trost was able to scout the second game.
“They (Whitewater) are very good. It’s going to be a tough game,” he said. “They’ve got depth, they’re well balanced, they’re big and strong and they have players who can shoot.”
Whitewater-DePauw
DePauw (15-13) trailed by 13 early in the second half but got as close as 61-58 with seven minutes remaining.
“Then we just screwed up a switch and left 12 (Anthony Mlachnik) open. He made us pay for it,” Tigers’ coach Bill Fenlon said. “That killed us.”
Alex Stewart topped DePauw, which was 7-11 at one point this season, with 19 points.
Whitewater (23-5) displayed its season-long balance as Melvin Williams scored 16 points, Rob Perry and Mlachnik had 15 each and Mike Toellner 14.
"We came out with pretty good intensity,” Warhawks’ coach Pat Miller said. “The second half they were much more aggressive. They’re a good team.”
Like Trost, Miller also expects a tight game today.
“They shoot it well. They’re physical, they have depth,” said the Whitewater coach. “They’re good in transition. I’m impressed how their big men run the floor. They are definitely one of the better teams I’ve seen.”
Titan rally falls short in finale
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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ROCK ISLAND — Blown out in the first half, the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team kicked up a breeze of its own in the second half Saturday at Carver Center.
North Central found just enough air to thwart a frantic Titans’ comeback and claim a dramatic 51-49 victory in the championship game of the inaugural College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament before a crowd of 895.
Adam Krumtinger’s rebound basket with 1:03 remaining proved to be the difference as the second-seeded Cardinals moved to 22-5 and captured the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
IWU’s Zach Freeman, a former teammate of Krumtinger at Normal Community High School, could not convert two free throws with three-tenths of a second remaining.
“We got what we deserved,” said IWU coach Scott Trost, whose team trailed by 16 at the half and 19 with 15:34 remaining before mounting an unlikely rally to grab a short-lived lead. “To start out like we did ... We didn’t play well the first half, with no energy. We were a lot more aggressive the second half.”
The fourth-seeded Titans dropped to 20-6. IWU’s season is now at the mercy of the Division III national selection committee. The 59-team men’s field will be announced this evening on the Web site ncaasports.com with the tournament bracket set for release Monday morning.
No. 12-ranked IWU hopes to snare one of 18 at-large bids with conference rival Augustana likely ahead of the Titans in line.
“I’m not talking about the NCAA Tournament,” said Trost when asked about his team’s chances.
No. 19 North Central led 45-26 before IWU suddenly and amazingly shook itself out of a deep funk.
The Titans reeled off 20 of the next 21 points and pulled even at 46-all on a Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointer at the 6:18 mark.
“We were up 17 at the half, but it was one half,” Krumtinger said. “We knew they could come back in the same amount of time and they did. We got the last one. That’s what matters.”
IWU took its first lead (47-46) since 6-4 on a Freeman free throw. Two Cory Jones free throws with 4:48 showing gave the Titans a 49-47 edge and had the pro-Wesleyan crowd roaring.
Yet as quickly as the Titans’ spurt began, it screeched to a halt. IWU would not score again.
“We had three or four possessions up two and we didn’t score. That’s the game,” said Trost. “We couldn’t make lay-ups, we didn’t execute, we took bad shots.”
Dan Walton scored from the lane with 2:05 left to tie the score, and Krumtinger’s rebound basket gave North Central back the lead.
“I snuck in behind Zach and got him boxed out a little,” Krumtinger said. “It came my way, and I got the layup.”
After North Central blocked an Adam Dauksas 3-point attempt to get the ball back, the Cardinals ran the shot clock down until Freeman swiped a pass at the 11-second mark.
IWU hurried downcourt and got the ball inside to Freeman, who missed an inside shot and got his own rebound. The second chance shot rolled off as North Central was called for a foul. The clock showed 0:00, but the horn did not sound and the officials ruled three-tenths of a second remained.
Freeman’s first free throw bounced off the back of the rim. He intentionally missed the second, but the carom went nowhere near a Titan as time expired.
“We had great intensity the second half. But half a game is not going to get it done against a good team,” Amelianovich said. “The opportunities were definitely there. We got some great defensive stops, but we couldn’t convert on the other side.”
Freeman paced the Titans with 17 points, while Cory Jones contributed 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Amelianovich added nine, but Dauksas scored only five points (nine below his average) and was 1 of 12 from the field.
The Cardinals and Simmons were nothing short of dominant in the first half. The 6-foot-6 junior was outscoring Wesleyan, 16-15, with North Central enjoying a 27-15 lead that grew to 37-21 by halftime.
“We tried to double him and that didn’t work,” Trost said. “We were too easy on him, too soft. We were letting him get the ball.”
Simmons was 9 of 11 shooting in the first half and scored 20 of his 24 points. Walton chipped in 13 points, while Krumtinger had six points and seven rebounds.
“We played extremely well the first half. Illinois Wesleyan played extremely well the second half,” North Central coach Todd Raridon said. “Wesleyan was more intense the second half. I’m pleased our kids hung on. Krumtinger’s put-back was huge.”
North Central shot 57.7 percent and held Wesleyan to 30.8 percent. The Cardinals were 5 of 18 (27.8 percent) in the second half and 45.5 percent overall.
“I hope Illinois Wesleyan makes it,” Krumtinger said of the NCAA Tournament. “They’re a good team.”
The Titans finished at 35.4 percent (17 of 48) from the field, were 3 of 16 from 3-point range and outrebounded North Central, 32-27.
Titans finish off Augustana
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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ROCK ISLAND - This time, Illinois Wesleyan found its finishing touch.
Squandering second-half leads of nine and 13 points in its two regular-season losses to Augustana, the fourth-seeded Titans constructed a 21-point advantage and massaged it with efficiency to produce an 81-67 victory over top-seeded Augustana Friday at the inaugural College Conference of Illinois and wisconsin Tournament.
"We kept urgency. That was a big factor," said IWU senior Keelan Amelianovich. "We kept playing hard on defense and stuck with the game plan."
No. 12-ranked IWU will meet No. 19 North Central in today's 7:30 p.m. championship game with an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament on the line.
The second-seeded Cardinals defeated No. 3 seed Elmhurst, 67-57, in the opening semifinal.
IWU-Augustana
A Carver Center crowd of 1,547 saw IWU move to 20-5 while handing No. 9 Augustana (21-5) its first home loss this season in 12 games.
"We've been waiting for one of these, hoping it would kick in. We wanted to play 40 minutes and we did," said Titans' coach Scott Trost. "A lot of people doubted us, but there is a fine line between winning and losing."
The Titans considerably strengthened their case for an NCAA at-large bid if they should lose today. No. 9 Augustana still looms as an at-large lock Sunday evening when the NCAA field is announced.
"Illinois Wesleyan is a great team. Beating them twice in the regular season is pretty remarkable," Vikings' coach Grey Giovanine said. "They are so strong on the front line. They can bring in so many bodies. It's pretty surprising we outrebounded them (40-30). We didn't create enough turnovers."
IWU committed a mere seven turnovers and shot at least 50 percent from the field in each half.
"We played an excellent game," Titans' point guard Adam Dauksas said. "We had that determination we were not going to lose and that's what we need."
Wesleyan led 43-34 at the half but that was of little comfort. The Titans had the advantage by seven and three points after 20 minutes in the first two Augustana games.
IWU grabbed a 50-36 lead on a Dauksas three-point play but didn't really take off until the score stood at 52-40.
An Amelianovich 3-pointer ignited an 11-2 spurt that also featured a Cory Jones dunk and baskets from Steve Schweer, Chris Jones and Zach Freeman for a 63-42 bulge with 12:30 remaining.
TITANS
FROM B1
The Vikings responded with six quick points but the momentum lasted only until Matt Arnold's 3-pointer at the 9:09 mark.
"We realized we were up but that didn't mean anything," Cory Jones said. "We still had to play. We played to the final horn. It was a great victory."
Jordan Delp's rare four-point play cut the Wesleyan lead to 70-57 with 5:59 showing. Two Freeman baskets kept the Vikings at bay.
"We didn't turn the ball over. We made the extra pass," said Trost. "We limited them to one shot and our shot selection was good."
IWU limited CCIW scoring leader Rick Harrigan to 14 points, nine below his average, with the defensive efforts of Jason Fisher, Arnold and Amelianovich. Harrigan was 6 of 20 from he field and missed all five 3-point attempts.
"We made a little adjustment," Trost said. "We switched off on screens on him. We made him work for all his shots."
Freeman paced four Titans in double figures with 19 points while hitting 8 of 10 shots. Amelianovich added 16, Dauksas 12 and Arnold 10. Cory Jones had eight points and a team-high seven rebounds.
"We slowed down a little," said Dauksas, who had eight of IWU's 15 assists. "We didn't force shots, and we took care of the ball."
Dain Swetalla topped the Vikings with 23 points and 15 rebounds. Augustana finished at 37.7 percent from the field with shooters other than Swetalla connecting on just 15 of 50.
A 11-2 spurt highlighted by a Freeman dunk and a Fisher 3-pointer handed Wesleyan a 26-17 lead at the 7:14 mark of the opening half.
Augustana got back within 30-28 on a Pat Brusveen 3-pointer, but an intentional foul by Brusveen on Fisher and the resulting two Fisher free throws at the 1:21 mark were part of a 13-6 Titan run to close the half.
Dauksas picked up two fouls in the game's first 2:11 but was able to get to halftime without picking up any more and ended with three.
"That game is in the past now," Amelianovich said. "We have to carry it over (into today). We have to compete as if it's our last game."
IWU and North Central split two games in the regular season. The Cardinals prevailed, 74-70, at Shirk Center, while Wesleyan won, 91-88, in Naperville.
North Central-Elmhurst
Elmhurst (17-9) erased a 13-point second-half deficit and was tied 52-52 after a Brian Lee shot with seven minutes remaining.
The Bluejays, however, scored just two points over the next six minutes, and five straight Dan Walton points helped North Central (21-5) to a 61-56 lead.
Cardinals' senior guard Adam Teising scored five points in the final 41 seconds, including a game-clinching steal and layup.
Walton paced North Central with 20 points, Anthony Simmons and Teising added 12 each and Normal Community High School graduate Adam Krumtinger chipped in 11.
Simmons grabbed 15 rebounds as the Cardinals enjoyed a 39-26 margin on the boards. Simmons outrebounded the entire Elmhurst team (9-8) in the first half.
"We rebounded well the whole game. That's tough to do against them," Krumtinger said. "We've had a few games we lost where if we rebounded we would have won. Coach (Todd Raridon) has been on us to attack every rebound."
The stellar Elmhurst career of Eureka native Chris Martin came to an end with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four steals. Brent Ruch, a freshman from Farmer City, paced the Bluejays with 14 points and Lee had 10.
North Central shot 54 percent from the field, compared to 34 percent for Elmhurst.
Titans send seniors out in style
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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BLOOMINGTON — His seniors had done their job. Now it was time for Illinois Wesleyan basketball coach Scott Trost to do his.
And Trost came through.
With a regular-season ending victory over North Park well in hand, Trost managed to remove all eight of his seniors to individual standing ovations from the Shirk Center faithful to cap IWU’s 94-67 triumph before an appreciative crowd of 2,900.
“That was the hard part,” Trost said with a smile. “I wanted to give the fans a chance to recognize them. There is a bond that develops over four years between players and fans.”
Ranked 10th nationally, Wesleyan (19-5, 9-5 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) will be the No. 4 seed in the inaugural CCIW Tournament Friday and next Saturday at Carver Center in Rock Island.
The Titans will meet conference champion Augustana at 8 p.m. Friday with Elmhurst and North Central playing in the first semifinal at 6 p.m. The title game is Saturday at 7:30 p.m. with the tournament winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
Elmhurst defeated Wheaton and North Central knocked off Augustana Saturday to forge a three-way tie for second place in the CCIW at 9-5 with IWU. The Titans lose tiebreakers to both teams.
Senior co-captain Cory Jones scored a season-high 19 points and connected on 8 of 11 shots from the field, while twin brother Chris was 5 of 5 from the floor and finished with 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
“All day I was thinking about this game. I didn’t want to leave on a bad note,” Cory Jones said. “I left it all on the court. I do that every night, but I was more effective. We played in unison and got the job done. If we can continue to do that, we can go very far.”
“Cory and Chris were outstanding,” Trost said. “We haven’t had that night in and night out. When we get contributions from all 10, we’re good.”
According to Cory Jones, emotions were running high for what was almost certainly IWU’s final home game of the season.
“A couple of times I caught myself holding back tears,” he said. “If I could go back in time and play anywhere else, I wouldn’t.”
The Joneses scored IWU’s first 11 points. The first non-Jones points came on a Jason Fisher 3-pointer that capped a 10-0 spurt and handed the Titans a 14-8 lead.
Applying some uncharacteristic full-court pressure, Wesleyan forced 12 North Park first-half turnovers and had more offensive rebounds (12) than the Vikings had total rebounds (nine).
“I thought that helped get us going,” Trost said of the pressure. “It got us more focused and playing a little harder. And we executed it pretty well.”
Two consecutive Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointers boosted the IWU lead to 43-25 and the Titans took a 48-30 cushion into halftime.
Wesleyan led 58-39 before putting North Park (4-21, 2-12) away with a flourish.
A 24-9 IWU outburst feautured two Fisher 3-pointers and slam dunks from Cory Jones and Zach Freeman.
“Offensively, we got in a good rhythm,” Trost said. “It was good to see them having fun in front of some special fans.”
Entering the game 9 of 41 from 3-point range (22 percent), Fisher was 3 of 3 from beyond the arc en route to a season-high 13 points.
“It feels good. This is a big win for the crowd. They’ve been great. We owe it to them,” said Fisher. “It’s been a frustrating year. I try not to pay attention to my percentage. My shots felt good. I’m glad I did it in my last home game.”
“We all know he can do it,” Trost said of Fisher’s shooting. “It’s a confidence thing.”
Amelianovich missed his first four 3-point attempts but ended 4 of 9 from long range and scored 16 points to move past Steve Kuehl into ninth place on IWU’s career scoring list.
Senior point guard Adam Dauksas had a rough shooting night (2 of 10) but still nearly accomplished a triple-double with nine points, 10 assists and a career-high nine rebounds.
Freeman chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds as Wesleyan dominated the boards, 49-31.
Brett Mathisen paced North Park with 16 points, Jay Alexander had 15 and Devin Burnett 11.
The Vikings shot 42 percent from the field and committed 17 turnovers, seven more than the Titans.
Augie tops Titans for CCIW title
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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ROCK ISLAND - After a two-year stay in Bloomington, the best player and the best basketball team in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin has changed addresses.
The proof for Rick Harrigan and No. 9-ranked Augustana College is the CCIW championship trophy presented by league commissioner Chris Martin on Wednesday night after the Vikings' 93-85 overtime victory over No. 10 Illinois Wesleyan.
After sitting out a Saturday loss to Millikin with a deep thigh bruise, Harrigan scored 26 points including a critical 3-pointer in overtime as Augustana (21-3, 11-2 in the CCIW) clinched the outright conference championship before a vocal Carver Center crowd of 2,413.
"Harrigan is the most outstanding player in the league," said IWU coach Scott Trost, whose own Adam Dauksas and Keelan Amelianovich earned the CCIW's top individual honor the past two seasons. "He made plays at the end. That's what the MVP of the league does."
While dropping to 18-5 and 8-5 in the CCIW, the Titans slipped into a three-way tie for second place in the league with Elmhurst and North Central.
Wesleyan, North Central, Elmhurst and Wheaton are still battling for the remaining three spots in the conference tournament.
If IWU does not capture the automatic bid that goes to the conference tournament champion, the Titans will be in danger of missing the NCAA Division III Tournament.
"It was a tremendous battle," said Vikings' coach Grey Giovanine, whose team won its first outright CCIW championship since 1993. "To have a great game, you have to have a great opponent and they are."
Harrigan scored seven points in overtime. The biggest three came over an IWU zone with one second on the shot clock. The 3-pointer, the senior's fifth of the game with 1:04 remaining, extended the Augustana lead to 89-83.
"He dribble drives so well. That's why I went to zone," Trost said. "What's a guy to do? He hit a tough shot."
IWU could only match Harrigan's seven points in the extra five minutes while shooting 2 of 9 from the field.
"He's a really good player. He shoots from the outside and he gets to the basket," Wesleyan guard Matt Arnold. "That's why he's difficult to guard. He hit some big shots at the end."
Giovanine marveled at Harrigan's performance.
"He was good," the Augustana coach understated. "I certainly did not think he would be able to do what he did, but adrenaline gets flowing. But to win we need to get a lot of contributors and we did."
IWU's only points of the last 2:15 of overtime came on an Amelianovich shot with 28 seconds left as the Titans dropped to 3-1 in overtime games this season.
Wesleyan lost Dauksas, its point guard and emotional leader, for a mere 35 seconds when a stray elbow opened a gash on his forehead. After the bleeding was stopped, Dauksas returned with a bandage wrapped around his head.
The Titans, who led 57-48 at the 14:55 mark after an Amelianovich 3-pointer, needed an Andrew Freeman tip-in with 20 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.
A Pat Brusveen 3-pointer with 2:58 left in overtime presented the Vikings with an 83-80 lead they would not relinquish. Augustana nailed 11 of 23 from 3-point range and shot 51 percent (28 of 55) overall.
The Titans were 3 of 6 from the free throw line in overtime. IWU ended at 23 of 32 from the line (72 percent), while the Vikings were 26 of 39 (67 percent).
"We missed some free throws at the end, but I'm proud of the kids' effort," said Trost. "We were having a hard time running stuff. They made it difficult to get entries (into the post)."
Amelianovich finished with 17 points, while Zach Freeman had 17 points and a game-high 10 rebounds as IWU held a 38-33 edge on the boards.
Andrew Freeman had 12 points in his first double-digit scoring performance of the season. Dauksas was held to eight points and was 2 of 11 from the field.
"We still have a chance (for an NCAA bid)," Arnold said. "We will be in every game. If we can tighten up on a few possessions, we can get over the hump and make a run."
Wesleyan was hurt by the foul trouble of twins Cory and chris Jones. Cory fouled out with 7:55 left in regulation and Chris followed at the 6:09 mark.
Dain Swetalla complemented Harrigan with 20 points and seven rebounds. Jay McAdams-Thornton and Brusveen chipped in 12 each.
"We got the ball inside and drew some fouls by design (in overtime)," Giovanine said.
Augustana led by seven (20-13) and IWU held a five-point margin (36-31) before the game settled into its fourth tie at 39-39.
Andrew Freeman's second 3-pointer of the season gave Wesleyan a 42-39 edge, and Arnold's 17-footer at the 39-second mark sent the Titans into halftime ahead 45-42.
All nine Titans who played in the first half recorded at least one basket and grabbed one or more rebounds.
Wheaton on target for upset of Titans
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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WHEATON - What a week for Wheaton.
And what a painful loss for Illinois Wesleyan.
Wheaton erased a 15-point second-half deficit with deadly perimeter shooting, and No. 7 IWU seemed incapable of grabbing a rebound when the Thunder did miss Saturday as Wheaton upended Wesleyan, 69-66, Saturday before a King Arena crowd of 1,547.
"Defensivley, we were terrible," said Titans' coach Scott Trost after the Thunder riddled his team for nine second-half 3-pointers. "We couldn't guard anybody and we couldn't get a rebound."
In a loss that could prove extremely damaging if IWU is seeking an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, the Titans dropped to 18-4 overall and 8-4 in the CCIW.
Wheaton (9-13, 5-6) pulled off its second straight upset of a top seven team after besting No. 3 Augustana on Wednesday.
"We've got a bunch of blood and guts kids. I don't know if we've ever beat two top 10 teams in four days," Thunder coach Bill Harris said. "We shot 30 percent in the first half and 50 percent in the second half. That was part of it."
The Titans had outrebounded its first 19 opponents this season but gave up 15 Wheaton offensive rebounds while being humbled on the boards, 34-20.
"I wish I had an answer for that," said reserve forward Steve Schweer, who as the only Titan with more than three rebounds handled five. "I don't mean to question my team's heart. But I'm going to do it."
IWU led 42-27 after Matt Arnold opened the second-half scoring with a fast-break basket.
Wheaton, which took the Titans to overtime at Shirk Center before losing, reeled off 10 quick points to get back in the game.
Thunder senior Jordan Kemper, who had five points in the first IWU game, was 5 of 6 from 3-point range in the second half on his way to 25 points. Kemper entered the contest 3 of 18 from beyond the arc in conference play and 10 of 36 through 21 games.
"They weren't covering him and he stepped up," Harris said.
A Kemper 3-pointer at the 9:13 mark brought Wheaton into a 51-51 tie, and two straight John Mohan 3-pointers put the Thunder ahead 62-60 with 3:05 remaining.
IWU got back even on a Keelan Amelianovich baseline shot, but an Andy Wiele basket at the 2:24 mark put the Thunder ahead to stay.
The Titans missed three free throws in the final 2:15, while Mohan and Tony Bollier both nailed two free throws in the last 23 seconds to preserve the upset.
A long Amelianovich 3-point try in the final seconds was short.
"Everything went wrong," said Amelianovich, who led IWU with 19 points. "They hit some big shots and we didn't. They rebounded and we didn't. They got back on defense and we didn't. That's the difference right there."
A collapsing Wheaton defense held IWU inside standout Zach Freeman to 11 points, two rebounds and just six shots.
"Zach had 18 rebounds down there. Tonight Michael Fiddler kept him off the boards," Harris said. "We made free throwws in the last minutes, and Wesleyan missed a couple. In a close game, free throws matter."
Adam Dauksas scored 15 points and moved into first place on the IWU career assists list. Dauksas' 527 assists pushed Brian Martin's career total of 524 down to second. Arnold added 10 points.
"We didn't execute anything we worked on in practice," Schweer said of the second half. "We didn't make adjustments our coaches told us to make. This is on us."
Mohan connected on four 3-pointers en route to 14 points and Bollier had 10. Wiele hauled down 11 rebounds and Kemper eight.
The Thunder sank 13 of their 22 total field goals and took 30 of their 54 shots from beyond the arc.
"They run good stuff, and we didn't defend them," Trost said. "This team (IWU) has not shown an ability to play 40 minutes consistently all year. The second half we got back to the same old thing of not sharing the ball, shooting too quick and not posting up strong."
Ironically, Wesleyan still has a chance to tie for the CCIW championship after Millikin shocked Augustana (10-2 in the CCIW) Saturday in Decatur.
IWU, which plays Augustana at Rock Island Wednesday, is tied for second in the conference with Elmhurst at 8-4. North Central dropped to 7-5 with a Saturday home loss to Carthage.
The Titans survived a scoring drought of over six minutes in the first half by closing the half on a 16-2 flurry.
Wheaton led 25-24 when Arnold hit three free throws and Dauksas followed with a steal and layup as IWU began trapping on the wings.
Amelianovich tossed in his third 3-pointer of the half for a 32-25 Wesleyan advantage.
Two Kemper free throws at the 2:46 were Wheaton's only points of the half's final 4:39. Dauksas responded with a 3-pointer and found Arnold on a fast break. The assist was Dauksas' third of the game and set the IWU school record of 525.
Andrew Freeman rebounded a Wheaton miss with under five seconds left and passed to Dauksas, who hit Schweer for a layup at the buzzer and a 40-27 halftime cushion.
The Titans played without two regular contributors in Jason Fisher (back spasms) and Chris Jones (sore knee).
Titans strong inside, out
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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BLOOMINGTON -- At the 13:18 mark of the second half, Cory Jones got a call he did not expect to receive. "CORY," barked Illinois Wesleyan coach Scott Trost, and before Jones knew it he had taken the Shirk Center floor Wednesday.
"I didn't have time to think about anything," Jones said. "Actually, it helped me. My mind was a lot clearer. I wasn't really thinking about what I wanted to do. I just went in and played. That's what I need to do more often."
Nursing an infected blister on the bottom of his left foot, Jones scored 12 points in just seven minutes to help IWU pull away for a 95-76 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory before a crowd of 2,400.
"We didn't get a lot of minutes from (Steve) Schweer and Andrew (Freeman) with foul trouble, but I thought Cory came in and gave us a big lift," Trost said. "He made a lot of plays and stepped to the line and hit some free throws. He brought a lot of energy to us."
No. 7-ranked IWU improved to 18-3 overall and 8-3 in the CCIW with its fourth straight victory.
Even with Chris Jones sidelined with a sore knee and Schweer and Andrew Freeman limited to a combined 29 minutes before both fouled out, the Titans were able to exploit Millikin inside as Zach Freeman scored a game-high 26 points.
"We were thin there for awhile," said Trost, who went further down his bench than usual to get 11 minutes from sophomore Darius Gant. "It was a real workmanlike performance. It wasn't a great performance. But I thought we did a lot of good things, things we can build on."
A Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointer and an Andrew Freeman steal and layup had extended Wesleyan's lead to 58-44 before Millikin (9-13, 2-9) rallied to within 61-54 on a Korte Long basket.
Jones then scored nine points during a 15-6 IWU spurt that produced a 76-60 lead.
"It's fine. It's a lot better than it was," Cory Jones said of his blister. "The swelling went down. It doesn't hurt when I put pressure on it as much."
Big Blue coach Tim Littrell lamented the fact his team hit just 4 of 9 free throws during Wesleyan's decisive run.
"We had the ball inside (down seven) and had a turnover. Turnovers and not cashing in on free throws, with a team like ours you have to be able to do those things," Littrell said. "They're deep. They are a very good basketball team.
"They struggled a little bit earlier in the year, but right now they're playing as well as they've played all year long. That's a credit to their kids. They know what it's about."
Zach Freeman was 9 of 15 from the field including three slam dunks.
"We had some good passes from the wings," he said. "If I was in the right position, I would take it to the basket. If not, I kicked it out and we kept running our offense."
The Titans committed a season-low six turnovers with just one coming in the second half. Senior point guard Adam Dauksas scored 11 points and handed out 10 assists to pull within two of Brian Martin's IWU career record of 524.
Amelianovich had an off game from 3-point range (1 of 5) but was 6 of 7 inside the arc on his way to 20 points.
Matt Arnold chipped in nine points, while Schweer grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
The Titans shot 63.3 percent in the second half (19 of 30) and 58.6 percent overall (34 of 58).
Reid Jones gunned in 6 of 11 from 3-point range to match fellow guard Drew Gensler with 18 points for Millikin. Lance Brooks added 13 points, while Long had 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Chris Jones update
An MRI revealed Chris Jones has a slight tear of his patella tendon. He may be able to return for Saturday's game at Wheaton.
Titans reward Dauksas' heroics with win
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
WJBC audio clip - Dauksas 30 footer
WJBC audio clip - Chris Jones winner
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BLOOMINGTON -That is one happy birthday.
Senior Adam Dauksas' regulation heroics miraculously got Illinois Wesleyan to overtime, and Chris Jones' layup on a spectacular Dauksas assist lifted the Titans to an unlikely 88-87 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory before a standing room only crowd of 3,000.
"It's my birthday. I can't lose on my birthday," said Dauksas, who turned 22 Saturday. "They definitely made us work for it, but I was not going to let us lose."
Dauksas' 28-foot 3-pointer at the regulation buzzer gave No. 8-ranked Wesleyan (17-3, 7-3 in the CCIW) a chance it didn't appear it would get.
"It's a great win. Adam Dauksas made plays," Titans' coach Scott Trost said. "He found a way. He made a great pass at the end."
That pass came on a baseline drive as Dauksas wrapped the ball around an Elmhurst defender to Jones, who softly banked the ball in with two seconds left in overtime. A desperation heave by Elmhurst's Chris Martin at the buzzer was off the mark.
"I'm so happy. It's not that I can't believe I made it, but I was struggling the whole game," Jones said of his only basket of the game. "It was an amazing pass. I tried to get it up as quick as I can. I'm happy I made it when it counted."
Elmhurst (14-7, 6-4 in the CCIW) led 83-78 in overtime before a Keelan Amelianovich 19-footer and a Dauksas off-balance bank shot brought IWU within one.
A Martin basket and two Dauksas free throws put the score at 85-84 before an Amelianovich driving shot with 36 seconds left put Wesleyan back ahead.
Martin's jumper at the 16-second mark gave the Bluejays an 87-86 edge to set up Dauksas and Jones for an incredible finish.
"I knew they would collapse on me," Dauksas said. "I have all the faith in the world in my guys finishing down low and Chris stepped up big."
Dauksas, who finished with 29 points (21 in the second half and overtime), nailed a huge 3-pointer from the corner with 29 seconds left in overtime to give IWU a 73-72 lead.
Nick Michael's shot put the Bluejays back ahead and after a Cory Jones miss, Martin sank two free throws with five seconds left for a three-point Elmhurst cushion.
Dauksas took the inbounds pass and sprinted downcourt before launching the game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
"We said get the ball to Adam and Adam get as far as he can," Trost said. "He made a play."
Amelianovich added 24 points for IWU, and Zach Freeman contributed nine points and 11 rebounds.
Farmer City freshman Brent Ruch had a huge second half and led Elmhurst with 23 points. Martin had 21, Michael 14 and Chris Ihlenfeldt 11.
The Titans were outrebounded for the first time in 26 games dating back to last seasohn, 38-29.
Arnold rescues Titans in the end
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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NAPERVILLE -- Matt Arnold lost just about everything Tuesday when a fire ravaged his off campus Bloomington residence.
His jump shot survived.
Arnold's 3-pointer with 1:17 remaining gave No. 8 Illinois Wesleyan the lead for good, and the Titans held on for a crucial 91-88 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory over No. 14 North Central Wednesday before a crowd of 1,200 at steamy Merner Fieldhouse.
IWU rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit to hike its record to 16-3 overall and 6-3 in the CCIW.
"I've never had to go through anything like this. Everything I owned is gone. But it's OK. No one was hurt," said Arnold of the blaze. "It's been difficult. It will take awhile to recover from that."
Arnold's third successful 3-point shot in as many attempts put Wesleyan ahead 85-83.
"I wasn't that open," said Arnold. "But I had a lot of confidence."
"Matt has had a tough year," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "He's a tough, hard-nosed kid. I'm so happy for him and all our guys."
Four Zach Freeman free throws and a basket from North Central's Adam Krumtinger put the score at 89-85. Cardinals' senior Ray Vicario then tossed in his seventh 3-pointer from the corner to cut the Wesleyan lead to one at the 24-second mark.
Keelan Amelianovich made one of two free throws, Vicario missed a wild 3-point try and one Freeman free throw with nine seconds remaining gave IWU a 91-88 edge.
Adam Teising missed a free throw with 4.4 seconds left and the ball went out of bounds off Wesleyan with 1.1 seconds showing. Vicario's desperation 3-point heave at the buzzer was off the mark.
"The kids didn't quit," Trost said. "Keelan was great, Zach had some big rebounds and free throws and Matt's three was huge. That's what it takes, a total team effort. I'm proud how we responded."
The Titans had a lot to respond to as North Central (15-4, 4-4) connected on 15 of its first 17 second-half shots and enjoyed an 80-68 cushion after a Teising three-point play with 8:43 remaining.
Wesleyan fought back with 12 straight points to forge an 80-80 tie on an Arnold 3-pointer, a Cory Jones rebound basket, a Freeman inbounds lay-in, an Adam Dauksas 3-pointer and another Jones bucket off a rebound.
"Once we got a couple stops and a couple great rebounds from our big men, that fed our fast break," said Amelianovich, who was 6 of 11 from 3-point range and led the Titans with 28 points. "The big thing was how we worked the ball around, and Matt's 3-pointer was absolutely huge."
North Central hit just 3 of 10 shots down the stretch but still finished at 66.7 percent for the second half (18 of 27) and 59.6 percent (34 of 57) overall.
"You hope psychologically you have a killer instinct, but we didn't show that," Cardinals' coach Todd Raridon said. "Against a good club like that, you can't let your guard down and that's why. We opened the door a little and they barged through."
North Central junior Anthony Simmons scored 28 points before fouling out at the 47-second mark. Simmons had 29 in the Cardinals' win over IWU Jan. 4 at Shirk Center. Vicario added 23, Krumtinger 15 and Teising 12.
Freeman contributed 20 points and 11 rebounds as Wesleyan outrebounded its opponent for the 25th straight game dating back to last season, 35-24.
Dauksas chipped in 14 points and seven assists and Jones had 10 points and six rebounds before fouling out with 3:02 to play.
If Trost had a favorite statistic, it may have been IWU's measly two second-half turnovers. The Titans had a season-low eight total and shot 54.8 percent from the field (34 of 62).
IWU trailed by nine twice in a fast-paced first half at 25-16 and 44-35.
The Titans closed the half on a needed surge as Amelianovich nailed a 3-pointer, Jason Fisher turned a steal into a layup and Amelianovich scored from inside - all in the final minute as IWU trailed 44-42 at the break.
Vicario keyed North Central's 7 of 12 first-half shooting from 3-point range by connecting on 4 of 4 from beyond the arc.
The Cardinals finished 10 of 20 from 3-point range. Wesleyan was 11 of 20.
IWU reserve forward Steve Schweer left the game at the 13:16 mark of the first half and did not return after a collision with Simmons gave Schweer a bloody nose.
According to Wesleyan trainer Bill Kauth, Schweer suffered a broken nose.
The game began 75 minutes after its scheduled 7:30 p.m. start. The officials were late arriving for the 5:15 p.m. preliminary game pitting the IWU and North Central women's teams.
Titans hits stride in romp
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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BLOOMINGTON - Keelan Amelianovich rediscovered his shooting touch Saturday at Shirk Center.
Andrew Freeman did not.
Both, however, scored plenty of points with their Illinois Wesleyan teammates in a 95-61 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin pounding of Carthage before a standing room only crowd of 3,000.
Amelianovich gunned in five 3-pointers on his way to 23 points and Freeman typified a ferocity the Titans had been sorely lacking of late with a team-high seven rebounds in 12 minutes.
"That's better. It's a start," said IWU coach Scott Trost. "It's good to see, but it's one game. That's as close to playing 40 minutes as we've been since the conference season started."
The No. 5-ranked Titans patched together some needed momentum for a key game Wednesday at North Central while improving to 15-3 overall and 5-3 in the CCIW.
"This feels awesome," said Amelianovich, who scalded Carthage for 11 points in a two-and-a-half minute stretch of the second half. "We had intensity, we ran, we rebounded, we played defense. This is what Coach has been talking about. This is a glimpse of what (the future) holds from this game on."
After a miserable 24 percent shooting performance in the second half of a loss to Augustana Wednesday, the Titans shot 56 percent from the field and nailed a season-high 12 from 3-point range on 21 attempts.
"We definitely got some of our swagger back," said point guard Adam Dauksas, who had 15 points and six assists. "Assists (20) are up. When we do that, we're a real good team. We have to keep this up. North Central is a huge game."
Carthage (6-12, 2-5) shot below 35 percent in each half and connected on just 3 of 22 from beyond the arc.
"Transition defense was one of the big keys, and we didn't have much of that," Red Men coach Bosko Djurickovic said. "We didn't play a very good game, and I didn't coach a very good game."
After Carthage took its lone lead of the evening at 20-18 on a Mark Morrison shot, IWU countered with a Zach Freeman dunk, a Dauksas 3-pointer and a Dauksas driving bucket for a 25-20 lead.
Navarro Thompson's 3-pointer brought the Red Men within three before the Titans went on an 18-3 surge capped by a Matt Arnold 3-pointer with 1:11 left in the half.
IWU scored four points in the final two-tenths of a second before halftime. Dauksas was fouled on a drive, and Djurickovic's protest drew a technical. Four Dauksas free throws sent the Titans into the locker room with a 47-28 cushion.
Two consecutive Zach Freeman three-point plays pushed the IWU lead to 61-38. Three quick Amelianovich 3-pointers and another from Arnold extended the Titans' margin to 77-49.
"We were being aggressive and running," Trost said. "We did a better job pitching the ball ahead and taking the ball to the basket. Or we shared the ball and made the extra pass."
Zach Freeman scored 20 points, while twin brother Andrew was instrumental in IWU overcoming the foul trouble of twins Cory and Chris Jones.
"I thought Andrew Freeman was fantastic," said Trost. "He had a lot of energy. He gives us another option."
Keena Johnson paced Carthage with 19 points, but high-scoring Kyle Jeffery was held to nine and 2 of 11 shooting from the floor. Jeffery had been averaging 25 points in conference play.
"Kyle is drawing everybody's attention and then some," Djurickovic said. "The Joneses are good defenders. They got in his shirt."
IWU outrebounded its opponent for the 24th straight game dating back to last season, 38-33.
Augustana knocks off cold-shooting IWU
By Randy Reinhardt
Pantagraph staff
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BLOOMINGTON -- For a basketball team averaging 78.5 points and shooting 51 percent from the field, the drought was mystifying. For a squad gunning for its fourth straight College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championship, the result was devastating. Illinois Wesleyan, suddenly looking lost as a toddler at the mall on offense, managed a mere 10 points over the final 14 minutes in bowing to Augustana, 57-54, Wednesday before a standing room only Shirk Center crowd of 2,900.
"We're just not playing our game right now," Titans' junior Zach Freeman said. "We played pretty well the first half offensively, but for some reason we just got out of sync."
The No. 7-ranked Vikings (17-1, 7-0 in the CCIW) took firm control of the conference race as every other team has at least two league losses. No. 5 IWU stumbled to 14-3 and 4-3 in conference play.
"We can't play 40 minutes. We can't. We've talked about it all year," said Wesleyan coach Scott Trost. "We haven't played good. I haven't coached good. If I had answers, we would change it. We've got seven games to change it."
The Titans' offensive futility featured 6 of 25 second-half shooting for 24 percent, the worst of any half this season.
And IWU made four of those shots in the opening 5:25 of the half. Adam Dauksas turned a seven-point halftime lead into a 13-point cushion with two 3-pointers to open the second half. The Titans still led 44-34 after a Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointer at the 14:35 mark.
Mixing missed shots with turnovers, Wesleyan managed only three points over the next five minutes. Augustana pulled within 47-46 on a Jay McAdams-Thornton shot with 9:31 remaining and grabbed its first lead since 15-14 on Dain Swetalla's basket with 4:06 remaining at 51-50.
"The second half our defense was as good as it's been this year on as good of an offensive team as we've played," Vikings' coach Grey Giovanine said. "We hold them to 24 percent. I couldn't be more pleased. I think that was the key to the game."
Two free throws from McAdams-Thornton extended the Augustana lead to 56-52 before Dauksas' 17-foot jumper at the 30-second mark was the only Titans' shot from the field to find its mark over the final 10:37. IWU was 2 of 12 from inside the arc in the second half with the only bucket coming on a Cory Jones dunk.
The Vikings' Rick Harrigan made one of two free throws to keep IWU within range of a 3-pointer. But after a scramble, Freeman was fouled with five seconds left. He missed the first free throw and intentionally missed the second. McAdams-Thornton grabbed the rebound and Augustana ran out the clock.
"They started denying and pressuring us," Trost said. "They denied Adam and took us out of our offense, and we didn't do anything to counteract it. Turnovers have plagued us in every game we've lost. Until we start taking care of the ball, it's not going to matter."
IWU committed a season-high 21 turnovers and matched a season low with seven assists.
titans
From B1
"Dauksas is so effective with that ball screen out there (the key)," said Giovanine. "We decided to try to take it out of his hands as much as possible. I thought that was pretty effective."
Wesleyan's 54-point output was its worst since a 55-53 loss to Hanover on Dec. 11, 2004 and its lowest in a CCIW game since a 51-42 win over Carroll in 1986.
"Unbelievable," said Jones, who scored 12 points. "We defended great. Fish (Jason Fisher) did a heckuva job on Harrigan. But you can't win games by turning the ball over 21 times no matter how good of defense you play. I give credit to Augustana. They are a good basketball team. But no doubt, we beat ourselves."
Playing his first game with a protective mask after breaking his nose Tuesday in practice, Freeman scored 13 points to match Dauksas for the team lead. Amelianovich hauled down 10 rebounds as IWU claimed a 40-29 advantage on the boards.
McAdams-Thornton paced Augustana with 16 points. Harrigan added 15 but was held nearly 10 points below his CCIW-leading average while being guarded primarily by Fisher.
The Vikings finished at 35.4 percent from the field, while IWU shot 37.8 percent.
The difference came at the free throw line where Augustana was 18 of 22 and Wesleyan 15 of 24.
Finally, IWU puts it in cruise for victory
By Randy Reinhardt
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CHICAGO - Another stress test was the last thing the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team needed Saturday at North Park Gymnasium.
Its cardiac health thoroughly documented through five tense College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin games, IWU longed for a relaxing evening to stretch its legs and maybe, just maybe stretch out to a comfortable lead.
A barrage of smooth jump shots and dogged defensive intensity did the Titan hearts good in a 78-57 CCIW victory over North Park before a pro-Wesleyan gathering of 1,000.
"I thought we did a lot of good things," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "Our defense was much better. Our intensity and sense of urgency was better."
The No. 6-ranked Titans moved to 14-2 overall and 4-2 in the CCIW ahead of Wednesday's showdown against conference leader Augustana at Shirk Center.
"It was good to get a win, especially here at the Crackerbox," said IWU guard Matt Arnold, who was 5 of 5 from the field and scored a season-high 13 points off the bench. "It seems like every year it's a close game here.
"The whole last hour and a half of practice (Friday) we worked defense. We've given up too many points. If we're going to make a run at the league (championship) we have to get better on defense."
The Titans were quite efficient offensively, as well.
IWU shot 60 percent or better in each half and finished at 61 percent (31 of 51).
"We made the extra pass. We gave up the good shot for the great shot," Trost said. "That's what we've always done except for the first couple weeks (of 2006)."
The Titans scored the game's first 10 points and led 14-4 with the help of two Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointers and eight Cory Jones points produced by a trio of jumpers and a slam dunk.
"We were trying to take our chances and make Jones shoot jumpers. He hit three right off and it hurt us," Vikings' coach Paul Brenegan said. "They are so deep and talented we wanted to limit their possessions. We tried to control the tempo at the offensive end, and we didn't do that very well."
Jones and twin brother Chris both were 5 of 6 from the field and scored 11 points. It was the second time this season the Joneses reached double figures in the same game.
"Confidence is all it was. I know I can knock that shot down," Cory Jones said. "We played a great game. We concentrated so much on defense, and overall we did a great job. It feels good to have hard work pay off."
"That was great to see. That's the Cory we need. He has confidence in his shot," said Trost. "Chris played well, too. Our bench gave us some good minutes."
North Park (3-14, 1-5 in the CCIW) pulled within 22-17 on a Bjorn Berg 3-pointer before the Titans reeled off 10 consecutive points in a surge capped by Jason Fisher's reverse layup off an Adam Dauksas assist.
Another Berg 3-pointer with seven seconds left in the half cut the Wesleyan advantage to 41-26 before Dauksas raced downcourt and swished a 30-plus foot 3-pointer at the buzzer for an 18-point lead entering the break.
The Titans connected on 8 of their first 11 second-half shots to lead 61-35 and enjoyed a 67-37 cushion on Andrew Freeman's first 3-pointer of the season with 9:37 to play.
Amelianovich paced IWU with 17 points, and Steve Schweer handled seven rebounds off the bench as the Titans continued their streak of outrebounding every opponent this season, 32-29.
Dauksas' first-half buzzer beater provided his only points, but the senior guard left the game for good at the 11:35 mark with 11 assists.
Senior forward Brett Mathisen paced North Park with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Berg added 16 points.
The Vikings shot 37 percent from the field (22 of 59).
Titan veterans pull out OT victory
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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BLOOMINGTON - So, Wheaton is rebuilding. Yeah, right.
Looking every bit a veteran unit, the youthful Thunder nearly tore the Illinois Wesleyan basketball season apart with an inspired performance Wednesday at Shirk Center.
Yet with an upset nipping at IWU's heels, the real veterans stood up and stood out.
A Keelan Amelianovich 3-pointer late in overtime, a spectacular Zach Freeman offensive rebound and a pair of clutch Adam Dauksas free throws lifted the Titans to a dramatic 87-81 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory before a crowd of 2,050.
"It's a lot of fun to win again," said Amelianovich after Wesleyan's first home triumph in 28 days. "Both teams played with a lot of energy the whole game, and both teams hit a lot of big shots. It was a fun game for the players and a fun game for the fans."
Ranked No. 6 nationally, the Titans (13-2, 3-2 in the CCIW) narrowly averted what would have been a devastating third conference defeat.
"It's important our guys feel good about themselves and they do in there," IWU coach Scott Trost said from just outside the Titans' locker room. "The kids just hung in there and hung in there and kept believing and found a way. We have to use this to get our confidence back. Hopefully this propels us a little bit."
Wheaton (5-9, 1-2) saw Tony Bollier's potential game-winning shot rim out at the regulation buzzer. The Thunder regrouped to take an 81-77 overtime lead on five straight points from freshman Andy Wiele.
A Freeman three-point play brought the Titans within one and Amelianovich's 3-pointer at the 1:11 mark gave IWU an 83-81 lead.
After Wheaton's John Mohan misfired from beyond the arc, IWU's Cory Jones did not connect on a short baseline jumper only to see Freeman swoop in for one of his career-high 18 rebounds and toss the ball out to a teammate before tumbling out of bounds.
The Thunder was forced to foul and Dauksas coaxed home two free throws with 12 seconds left. Amelianovich tacked on two free throws for the final margin.
"That's the type of year we've had. We played hard. We had chances to win it," said Wheaton coach Bill Harris after his team's sixth loss by six points or less. "Let's face it, Keelan and Adam hit some big shots which you expect your senior All-Americans to do."
Amelianovich scored a season-high 27 points but the three biggest came on his overtime 3-pointer.
"They were going for shot fakes the whole game," said the senior forward. "I wasn't necessarily off balance. I got my shoulders square. That's all I really care about. It's a good thing it went down. It felt good when I released it."
Freeman was a demon on the boards, with six offensive rebounds among his total. No other Titan handled more than four rebounds as the junior grabbed exactly half of his team's 36 boards.
"I could just feel it. In practice that was one of our main emphasises: get to the boards, offensive and defensive," he said. "Having that feeling in practice, getting after the boards and knowing what you have to do really helped me in a game situation."
The Thunder led 74-71 when Michael Fiddler got loose for a layup in the lane only to bounce it off the back of the rim at the 1:34 mark of regulation.
Amelianovich scored with 1:17 left and a Freeman free throw with 30 seconds showing tied the score at 74-74.
The 6-foot-8 Wiele was nothing short of amazing. Having made 6 of 20 3-point attempts entering the game, Wiele nailed 6 of 8 from beyond the arc on his way to a career-high 22 points.
"We think he's going to be OK," Harris said. "Sometimes freshmen don't know enough to be scared."
Wheaton, which erased an 11-point second-half deficit, also got 21 points each from Fiddler and Mohan. Ironically, the veteran Bollier was just 2 of 9 on 3-pointers as the Thunder sank 13 from long range.
Freeman was 7 of 9 from the field and scored 16. Jones matched a season high with 14 points, while Dauksas chipped in 12 points and nine assists.
The Titans showed offensive progress over recent lackluster outings with 54.7 percent shooting from the field and only nine turnovers.
Wheaton shot 47 percent from the floor and converted 14 of 15 free throws.
Titans suffer a 2nd CCIW loss
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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ELMHURST - The pained look of disbelief that appeared to be growing roots of late on the face of Illinois Wesleyan basketball coach Scott Trost got a momentary respite in the second half Saturday.
Elmhurst senior forward Chris Martin brought it back.
Martin nailed three huge second half 3-pointers after IWU had taken its first and only lead to carry the Bluejays to a 72-64 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin victory before an energetic Faganel Hall crowd of 1,978.
"This is a huge win," said Martin, a Eureka High School graduate. "We knew we would have a chance. They're a good team, but we're a good team, too. It came down to the last five minutes, who wanted it more and who stayed together. We did tonight."
No. 5 IWU dropped to 12-2 overall and 2-2 in the CCIW, while Elmhurst (10-5, 2-2) avoided what would have been a crippling third early league loss.
"We can't score anymore," Trost said. "We've gone from leading the league in points and (fewest) points allowed to not being able to stop people when we need to and not being able to score when we need to.
"It's frustrating. We've got to find a way to get it back."
After stumbling through a second straight absymal first half, Wesleyan closed a 45-36 deficit to 45-44 with a Zach Freeman basket and two Matt Arnold 3-pointers.
The Titans then had three possessions to take the lead but missed two shots and committed a turnover.
An driving basket from Adam Dauksas tied the score at 47-47 before Freeman dunked off a Keelan Amelianovich assist for IWU's lone lead of the evening with 7:37 remaining.
A Nick Michael bucket and two straight Martin 3-pointers gave Elmhurst back a six-point lead in a stretch where IWU's Cory Jones missed the first of a one-and-bonus free throw and Freeman misfired on two from the line.
"It was a great ballgame. We feel fortunate to win," Bluejays' coach Mark Scherer said. "Wesleyan is a great team. I'm very proud of our men."
A Dauksas 3-pointer brought Wesleyan within 57-53 before Martin connected again from beyond the arc for a 60-53 Elmhurst cushion at the 4:30 mark. The Titans did not get closer than six the rest of the way,
"Chris was throwing up today," Scherer said. "His strength is his incredible focus and competitive spirit. I don't think anyone would call him a pure shooter, but he plays his heart out in order to win."
Saying he did not feel as effective on the inside because of a recent illness, Martin scored all 15 of his points on five 3-pointers.
"I was shooting real well and luckily it fell," he said.
Dauksas tied a school record with eight 3-pointers in 13 tries and his game-high 28 points was one shy of his career high.
"It's really hard to talk about this one," Dauksas said quietly. "We didn't execute and they hit some tough shots."
Dauksas got little help, but Freeman did score 13 points. Cory Jones contributed eight points and nine rebounds. Amelianovich did not score in the opening half and finished with five, 13 below his average.
Michael's 21 points paced Elmhurst. Guards Brian Lee (12) and Chris Ihlenfeldt (10) totaled 22 points, nine above their combined average.
Brent Ruch, a freshman from Farmer City, helped the Bluejays with eight points and seven rebounds.
Committing nine first-half turnovers to one for the Bluejays, IWU trailed 25-16 after watching Lee drive uncontested for a transition basket at the 6:01 mark of the first half.
Dauksas kept the Titans from being blown out with 11 first-half points as Elmhurst lead 35-26 at the break.
IWU outrebounded the Bluejays, 39-34, but had 16 turnovers, 10 more than the home team.
Titans work overtime to escape Millikin
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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DECATUR - Zach Freeman seemingly couldn't miss on his frequent trips to the free throw line Wednesday at Griswold Center.
Yet when he did, Keelan Amelianovich and Adam Dauksas turned it into the play Illinois Wesleyan needed.
Amelianovich rebounded a Freeman miss and fired a pass to Dauksas, whose 3-pointer with 2:34 remaining in overtime gave the Titans a four-point lead that would become a gritty 68-60 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin triumph.
"Keelan really picked me up there," said Freeman, who connected on 16 of 19 free throws on his way to a game-high 22 points. "He made a great pass to Adam. That gave us the energy we really needed to get the win."
In the first overtime game of the season for both teams, No. 5-ranked IWU improved to 12-1 overall and 2-1 in the CCIW before a crowd of 1,000. Millikin dipped to 8-6 and 1-1 in league play.
"We're not playing our best, but we're finding ways to win," said Titans' coach Scott Trost, whose team nipped Carthage by a point Saturday in Kenosha, Wis. "We hung together. It was a struggle. But it's winning on the road, though."
Dauksas entered overtime with a mere two points. He finished with 11.
After Millikin's Doug Goldstein missed a pair of free throws with 1:19 left in overtime, another Dauksas 3-pointer at the 46-second mark extended the Wesleyan margin to 65-58.
"My shot felt good, but it wasn't going down," Dauksas said of regulation. "When we got to overtime, I felt I could take over and hit some big shots. And that's what happened. There was no nervousness. There was never a doubt in my mind we would win that game."
The Titans nearly did just that at the buzzer of regulation.
Amelianovich's awkward-looking 16-foot bank shot gave IWU a 54-53 edge. Millikin freshman Drew Gensler then made one of two free throws with 31 seconds remaining to forge a tie.
After a timeout, IWU got Amelianovich an open look at a game-winning 3-pointer. The shot from the right wing appeared half way down before it spun back out.
Amelianovich finished with 21 points and a game-high seven rebounds, four of which came at the offensive end.
Millikin's Korte Long, the CCIW's leading rebounder, was limited to 18 minutes by foul trouble. The junior fouled out at the 1:27 mark of regulation.
"We needed some sort of post presence," said Freeman, who was 3 of 9 from the field but drew a slew of Big Blue fouls. "You have to get low and demand the ball. That opens it up inside and outside.
"I definitely felt comfortable (at the line). Free throws are free. You have to take advantage. You have to stay focused no matter how tired you are."
titans
From B1
Freeman led IWU to a 23 of 30 performance at the free-throw line by shooting and making more foul shots than the entire Millikin team. The Big Blue were 10 of 14.
"Our post foul trouble put us in deep trouble early," said Millikin coach Tim Littrell. "Them getting to the free throw line 30 and us 14 was a big difference. We let them get there too often. Zach didn't miss many when you're not guarding him."
Reid Jones nailed four 3-pointers and paced the Big Blue with 18 points. Freshman sensation Gensler added 14 but a defensive effort led by Matt Arnold limited the guard to 5 of 15 shooting.
Brooks chipped in 12 and four blocks, and Mike Gavric 11 for Millikin.
The Titans' 35 percent shooting from the field (19 of 54) was its worst of the season as was its 20 points in the opening half. Freeman had half of IWU's points.
"We've lost our edge for a little bit," Trost said. "We have to find a way to get it back. We're out of sync a little bit."
The Big Blue got only 3:29 of court time out of Long before he sat the rest of the half with two fouls. Millikin also went 8:20 without scoring but remarkably led 25-20 at the break.
The Titans reeled off 20 of the second half's first 23 points. Three-pointers from Amelianovich and Arnold helped Wesleyan to a 40-30 advantage.
Millikin responded with a 14-4 spurt for a 44-44 tie. The Big Blue shot 44 percent from the field and were 8 of 15 (53 percent) from 3-point range.
IWU wraps up a three-game road swing Saturday in a 7:30 p.m. game at Elmhurst.
IWU narrowly avoids a second straight loss
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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KENOSHA, Wis. - Having coaxed in just one of two, Keelan Amelianovich left the free-throw line upset with himself late in Saturday's College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin basketball game.
Yet, the fact Amelianovich was able to convert one free throw - along with a final possession defensive stand - kept No. 1-ranked Illinois Wesleyan from suffering a second straight upset.
Carthage's Kyle Jeffery missed an 18-footer, and IWU's Cory Jones got his hand on the rebound as time ran out as the Titans escaped with an 80-79 victory before a Physical Education Center crowd of 1,075.
"After the first one, there was nothing else I could do," Amelianovich said of hitting his second free throw with 38 seconds left. "You only need to win by one point. Jeffery was on fire the whole game. It's a good thing he missed the one that counted the most."
The Titans moved to 11-1 overall and 1-1 in the CCIW despite missing six of 10 free throws over the final 4:25. Carthage slipped to 4-8 in its league opener.
"We got the stop we needed to," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "Somehow in the last week we got away from what we do - defense. We have to get down and defend and make it hard on them."
Jeffery scored 25 points and 30-year-old sophomore Malik Imani, the uncle of NBA player Caron Butler, added 21 on seven 3-pointers. Averaging 5.1 points, Imani nailed a 3-pointer to forge a 79-79 tie at the 46-second mark.
"We need to win some ballgames somewhere along the line. We're just good enough to be not quite good enough," said Red Men coach Bosko Djurickovic. "It's frustrating as it could possibly be. We need one of these to get some momentum."
Djurickovic said he was no problem with Jeffery's final shot other than the result.
"The man had a great game. I'll take that shot 10 times out of 10," he said. "If I wasn't coaching, what a wonderful game of college basketball this was."
Seven straight second-half points (four from Zach Freeman) gave the Titans their biggest lead since 11-5 at 72-67 with 6:55 to play.
A Jeffery 3-pointer at the 2:19 mark brought Carthage within 77-76.
"Jeffery and Imani were on tonight," Jones said. "We could have played better defense, but I'm not going to take anything away from Carthage. A win is a win, especially in the CCIW. We're the three-time champs so everybody is gunning for us. We expect every game to be tough."
Both Jones twins had season highs as Chris Jones was 6 of 6 from the field and scored 15 points and Cory added 14.
Amelianovich led IWU with 16 points, Freeman chipped in 14 and Adam Dauksas 10 as the Titans finished at 54 percent from the field and outrebounded the Red Men, 39-25.
"The road is tough in the CCIW," Amelianovich said. "Hopefully this one will get us on a roll and we can play like we're used to."
Matt Arnold grabbed a career-high eight rebounds and Cory Jones had seven.
Carthage committed just five turnovers to IWU's 13.
"Carthage shot the heck out of the ball," said Trost. "It seemed like we were right there (defensively) quite a few times."
In a defense optional first half, Imani surpassed his season average in the first four minutes and nailed his first five shots from beyond the arc. The Red Men led 35-27 after Imani's fifth 3-pointer and a Keena Johnson inside basket.
Freeman and Chris Jones scored six points each over the half's final seven minutes, and a Dauksas driving layup at the 44-second mark send IWU into halftime with a 45-44 edge. The previous first-half high for a Wesleyan opponent this season was 38 by Puget Sound.
Titans' senior guard Mike McGraw did not play for the first time this season.
"There are not enough minutes to keep everybody happy," Trost said.
IWU assistant coach Dennis Martel did not make the trip because of illness.
North Central edges Wesleyan men, 74-70
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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BLOOMINGTON “ Illinois Wesleyan's drive to a possible fourth consecutive College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin basketball championship stalled before leaving the garage Wednesday.
North Central built a 12-point second-half lead and made just enough free throws down the stretch to edge the No. 1-ranked Titans, 74-70, before a Shirk Center crowd of 2,000.
"They deserved to win. They were a better team than us tonight," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "We didn't play very well. They outplayed us, outcoached us and outhustled us. Everything. It seemed like they wanted it more."
Dropping to 10-1 in its CCIW opener, IWU saw unranked North Central (10-0, 1-0) remain unbeaten.
The Titans trailed 66-56 with 3:27 remaining before launching a rally. A Cory Jones basket brought Wesleyan within 69-66 with 36 seconds left, and a Keelan Amelianovich shot from the lane cut the Cardinals' lead to 72-70 at the 16-second mark.
North Central's Dan Walton then made one of two free throws to give IWU a chance. The Titans got the open 3-point shot they wanted, but Amelianovich could not connect from the corner and Anthony Simmons' rebound sealed the game for the Cardinals.
"I had to get it off quick," Amelianovich said. "I've hit that shot many times before. I just shot it a little bit long."
Amelianovich missed his final seven 3-point attempts and was 2 of 10 from beyond the arc. IWU went an entire half without a 3-pointer for the first time all season with an 0 of 4 second-half performance and was 4 of 19 overall.
The loss was only Wesleyan's eighth in 75 CCIW games at Shirk Center. The Titans fell to 138-13 in their home since the 1994-95 season.
"It's one game. But we've got to find a way to win," Trost said. "People are telling us how good we are, and we start believing it. We've got to play a heckuva lot better than that."
Simmons' hot start to the second half featured seven points to spark North Central to a 46-34 lead.
A three-point play by Amelianovich, a Zach Freeman inside shot and an Adam Dauksas driving bucket quickly brought the Titans within 46-41 and energized a stunned home crowd.
But North Central responded and a Simmons 3-pointer at the 9:47 mark pushed the Cardinals' margin back to 12 at 55-43. Simmons led all players with 29 points and 10 rebounds.
"He was hitting those outside shots and it made it hard to guard him because we focus on him playing inside," said IWU forward Chris Jones. "Right now we feel like we're 0-1 not 10-1. It really hurts, especially losing at home. But we'll get through it. We'll battle back."
North Central missed six free throws in the final 2:18 to assist the Wesleyan rally.
"It was a knock down, drag out. We were fortunate to come out ahead," North Central coach Todd Raridon said. "I was hoping it didn't go overtime. I know our kids were dead tired and I was tired."
Normal Community High School graduate Adam Krumtinger added 16 points and Dan Walton 12 for the Cardinals, who hurt IWU with 17 offensive rebounds.
"We had good defense and decent rebounding. We played hard," Krumtinger said. "It's a big win beating the No. 1 team in the nation, but I think we can do it more consistently now. There's no need to celebrate. We've got 13 left in the conference."
Dauksas scored 23 points, Amelianovich 15 and Freeman and Cory Jones 12 each for the Titans, who shot 42 percent from the field and had a season-low of seven assists.
"We didn't do much right at all the second half. Give them credit. They played good defense," said Amelianovich. "We couldn't get into our offensive sets, and we couldn't get the stops we needed."
North Central freshman Chris Drennan, an NCHS product like Krumtinger and Freeman, had four points and four rebounds as one of just seven Cardinals who saw action.
"We had guys diving on the floor we probably haven't had for awhile," Raridon said. "That's something very encouraging. When you go on the road, you need that hustle out of kids."
IWU will try to rebound Saturday in a 7:30 p.m. game against Carthage in Kenosha, Wis.
Titans roll to victory
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The Illinois Wesleyan basketball team will ring in the new year with a large zero to its credit.
And the Titans have nothing exactly where they want it - the loss column.
IWU completed a perfect pre-conference season Friday with a 76-60 victory over Westmont in the championship game of the Tom Byron Classic before a Murchison Gymnasium crowd of 500.
Westmont had won the previous five titles in its own tournament. The NAIA Division I team fell to 8-4.
"We played really well," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "It was a great team effort. Westmont is a good team."
Tournament Most Valuable Player Keelan Amelianovich paced the 10-0 Titans, ranked No. 1 in Division III, with 25 points. Adam Dauksas and Chris Jones contributed 14 each. Jones led all rebounders with nine.
Dauksas and Jones also made the six-player all-tournament team.
"We knew it would be a tough game," Amelianovich said. "We kept our composure at times we needed to. We moved the ball around and got good open shots inside and outside."
The Warriors closed a 13-point halftime deficit to six with a 9-2 surge to open the second half.
Westmont then got as close as 58-51 at the 8:21 mark before a pair of Zach Freeman dunks off Matt Arnold assists helped IWU hold off the hosts.
Santiago Aguirre, who fouled out with 4:55 to play, paced the Warriors with 18 points.
Westmont shot just 35.6 percent from the field, while IWU finished at 57.1 percent.
"I admire that team," Warriors' coach John Moore said of Wesleyan. "They played really well. They took us out of everything we do."
With Dauksas scoring 11 of IWU's first 20 points, the Titans led 20-13 on the strength of a 16-7 spurt.
Westmont climbed to within 26-23 on a Nick Debban basket before Amelianovich scored the next seven points to extend the Wesleyan margin to 10.
The Titans closed the half on a 10-2 spurt with Jason Fisher contributing a 3-pointer and a driving layup.
Wesleyan shot just under 61 percent from the field in the opening half and nailed 7 of 10 from beyond the arc. The Titans also enjoyed a 23-11 halftime rebounding advantage.
IWU opens its College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin schedule Wednesday in a 7:30 p.m. contest at Shirk Center against North Central.
"It's tough to travel across country and beat two really good teams," Amelianovich said. "To do that, is a very positive sign. There's nothing better to start the conference 10-0."
Other all-tournament team members were Aguirre, Chase Curtiss of Puget Sound and Mitch Webb of Berry.
Puget Sound 117, Berry 108
Puget Sound, ranked No. 5 in Division III, held off NAIA Division I Berry in the third-place game with a tournament-record offensive output.
Berry shot 63.8 percent from the field and scored 62 second-half points while dropping to 7-6. Webb and Lee Burrell scored 22 points each for the Vikings, who committed 30 turnovers.
Curtiss paced Puget Sound (8-2) with 26 points. Ryan DeLong and Jason Foster added 14 apiece.
IWU had defeated the Loggers, 104-87, in a tournament semifinal Thursday.
Titans start hot, withstand pressure
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - After facing 40 minutes of Puget Sound's relentless full court defensive pressure, the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team surely slept well Thursday night.
Had the top-ranked Titans allowed a shrinking 23-point second half lead to totally disappear, they may not have slept at all.
No. 5-ranked Puget Sound clawed back within six points before IWU regrouped sufficiently to claim a draining 104-87 victory in the Tom Byron Classic at Westmont College.
"Their pressure wears you down physically and mentally," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "We were not as sharp the second half, but we made plays when we needed to. It's still a 17-point win over the fifth-ranked team."
Wesleyan moved to 9-0 before a Murchison Gymnasium crowd of 350 and will face host Westmont at 9:30 p.m. (CST) today in the tournament title game. Westmont defeated Berry, 85-63, in Thursday's second game.
"The damage was done the first half," Puget Sound coach Eric Bridgeland said. "It was a story of two halves. They were very aggressive the first half. The second half we were very aggressive and had them on the run."
Frequently negotiating Puget Sound's trapping press with ease and converting the high percentage shots that resulted in the opening half, IWU motored to a 59-38 advantage entering halftime.
"We worked six on five all week (in practice). That helped us prepare for them," said senior forward Steve Schweer. "Once we would break their initial trap, we had a lot of mismatches."
Jason Fisher gave the Titans a 23-point bulge with the opening basket of the second half before an 11-2 Loggers' run fueled by post player Zack McVey brought Puget Sound within 63-49 with 17:06 remaining.
Committing 11 of the second half's first 13 personals, Wesleyan also ran into serious foul trouble as Cory Jones and Adam Dauksas picked up their fourth fouls before the 11-minute mark.
The Titans led 79-58 with 11:05 remaining, but Puget Sound (7-2) had another run left.
Three Chase Curtiss 3-pointers in a span of 1:33 helped slice the IWU edge to 90-84 at the 4:19 mark. Curtiss totaled seven 3-pointers and finished with 24 points.
Playing his first game of the season after serving an eight-game NCAA suspension, senior guard Matt Arnold then nailed a critical 3-pointer and the Titans pulled away in the final minute and a half.
"It's a hectic, frantic pace. They got us back on our heels the second half and we had some careless turnovers," said Trost. "But we're bigger and we have better athletes. Matt hit some big shots down the stretch. Chris (Jones) and Schweer gave us some really good minutes."
Keelan Amelianovich cooled after a sizzling start and led the Titans with 24 points. Dauksas had 22 points, 12 assists and four steals, while Zach Freeman contributed nine points and nine rebounds.
"They tried to wear us down," said Dauksas, who moved past IWU assistant coach Chad Hutson into second on the school's career assist list. "But we worked really hard, and I thought we handled their press really well. I think our maturity showed."
Hitting the century mark for the first time this season, Wesleyan also received 14 points from Chris Jones, 11 from Schweer and nine each from Arnold and Cory Jones.
The Titans shot 58 percent from the field and won two key statistical battles, committing 17 turnovers to Puget Sound's 24 and outrebounding the Loggers, 45-35.
McVey paced Puget Sound, which forces an average of 33 turnovers, with 26 points and 12 rebounds.
With early success from 3-point range against an IWU zone defense, Puget Sound grabbed a 17-14 lead.
A 15-3 spurt fueled by Amelianovich, who scored 16 points in the game's first 9:39, gave IWU a 29-20 margin.
A Taylor Marsh 3-pointer gave Puget Sound a momentary respite before IWU unleashed a surge of 11 straight points for a 40-23 cushion.
"Obviously, that's the best team we've played all year," said Bridgeland, whose team owns a victory over Division I California-Riverside. "And that's the best zone. They're very big. We didn't execute well the first half."
Schweer scored seven consecutive points late in the first half and had a season-high nine before the break.
Puget Sound, which launched 39 3-point attempts and connected on 15, shot 32.5 percent in the first half and 38.7 percent overall.
Titans make statement
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
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BLOOMINGTON Having stated its case with a fair degree of basketball eloquence for 30 minutes, Illinois Wesleyan was asked one final time to present its argument as the best team Tuesday at Shirk Center.
A determined Hanover squad posed the question by carving a 19-point deficit to nine.
The bigger, more athletic Titans responded in the affirmative with a 9-0 run that secured a 72-61 nonconference victory before a crowd of 2,500.
"That was definitely the point of the game we had to decide what we wanted to do," said IWU senior Keelan Amelianovich. "I think we handled that pretty well."
Avenging two of its five losses last season, No. 1 Wesleyan moved to 8-0 for the first time since 1996-97 in its first and only December home game. No. 14 Hanover fell to 6-3.
"We knew they weren't going to die. They have good players. They are never out of a game," Titans' coach Scott Trost said. "We need to get better, but it's a good win. We're excited to be 8-0."
An Amelianovich 3-pointer from the key at the 16:55 mark of the second half had extended the Titans' lead to 48-29.
With Hanover senior Brian Chrin scoring nine of his team-high 13 points in the surge, the Panthers began chipping away. A Ben Lye steal and layup cut the Wesleyan lead to 56-47 with 9:38 remaining and prompted a Trost timeout.
"We were sloppy. I don't think it was necessarily what they did," Trost said. "They backed us in and we didn't defend very well. We turned it over and didn't execute on offense."
That would change. And quickly.
A Chris Jones dunk and a Zach Freeman free throw pushed the IWU lead back to 12. Amelianovich and Steve Schweer both hit shots in the lane, and a pair of Amelianovich free throws let the Titans breathe a bit easier at 65-47.
"We were up the whole game and pretty much felt like we were in control," said Amelianovich, who led all scorers with 18 points. "But teams like that you can't blow out. They keep coming at you every play."
Falling behind by 12 in the first half while shooting just 29 percent, Hanover improved to 50 percent after the break behind veterans Chrin and Lye.
"There was a stretch we played pretty well," said Panthers' coach Mike Beitzel, who did not have sophomore center Robby Brown because of the flu. "I thought we were improving defensively, but I was disappointed on how many layups they got and some of the decisions we made.
"They are a veteran team with a lot of talent executing their offense real well. We weren't good enough to beat a real good team. I don't see them getting beat very often this year."
Freeman contributed 15 points, five rebounds and five blocks as the Titans shot 60 percent from the floor.
"We may not have destroyed them, but that wasn't our intention anyway," Freeman said. "We wanted to play within ourselves, and I think we did that enough for the win. We've got a lot of things to improve on, but that's why it's early in the year."
Cory Jones and Jason Fisher scored nine points each, while reserves Schweer, Chris Jones and Mike McGraw combined to hit 7 of 9 shots and score 16 points.
The Titans outrebounded Hanover, 35-24, but matched a season high with 17 turnovers.
Lye and Dan O'Leary chipped in 12 points apiece for the Panthers. Hanover leading scorer Clint Parker was held to a lone 3-pointer and was 11 points below his 14-point average.
IWU will take a Christmas break before traveling to Santa Barbara, Calif., and meeting No. 5 Puget Sound Dec. 29 in the first round of the Tom Byron Classic.
Assertive IWU rolls to victory
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph
JACKSONVILLE -- The Illinois College women's basketball team knocked off the No. 1-ranked Division III squad in the nation Dec. 11 with a victory over Millikin.
The Illinois College men were afforded the same opportunity Saturday as Illinois Wesleyan visited Sherman Gymnasium.
And even though they may have been very good Blueboys all year, there isn't near enough room in Santa Claus' sleigh to deliver that big of an upset.
IWU held Illinois College to 19 percent first-half shooting and wasted no time in putting away the overmatched Blueboys en route to an 85-57 nonconference victory before a crowd of 1,103.
"Any time you play a team like that, you want to make a statement right away," said IWU senior forward Keelan Amelianovich. "We did that defensively and offensively."
IWU has won its first seven games for the second straight season. Illinois College dropped to 4-3.
"The first half we played really good," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "Our focus was good and we had a lot of energy."
The Titans scored the first seven points and led 9-4 before reeling off an 18-0 spurt for a 27-4 margin.
"It was the kind of a game where we knew they weren't our caliber," said senior guard Jason Fisher said. "We usually play to our competition. But we stayed focused, got a big lead early and never let them come back."
Amelianovich scored 12 points on 4 of 5 shooting from 3-point range, and Fisher chipped in 10 of his season-high 12 points in the first half as the Titans enjoyed a 47-18 margin at the break.
"Keelan is as good of a shooter as you'll see," Trost said.
Amelianovich finished 7 of 10 from the field and 5 of 6 from beyond the arc for a game-high 19 points.
"When we get out to a lead and keep running," said Amelianovich, "it's hard for any team to keep us with us."
Illinois College shot a bit better in the second half (37 percent) and ended at 29 percent (19 of 66). Wesleyan was 30 of 59 for 51 percent.
The Blueboys did slice a 40-point deficit to 27 at one juncture and outscored the Titans by a point in the second half.
"I guess it's human nature to relax when you're up 30 at the half," Trost said. "But you have to give them credit for not quitting as well. It was a good win on the road."
Two statistics Trost won't be pleased with are his team's season-worst 15 of 30 free-throw shooting and Illinois College's 17 offensive rebounds.
Adam Dauksas contributed 11 points, 11 assists and six rebounds for IWU, while Zach Freeman added 10 points and eight rebounds. Wesleyan outrebounded the Blueboys, 54-36.
Andrew Freeman, who has been sidelined with a lower leg injury, saw his first action of the season and scored two points.
Joe Womble paced Illinois College with 11 points.
"We did a great job pushing the ball in the first half and got them tired," Fisher said. "This is a momentum builder for Tuesday."
The Titans meet No. 14 Hanover Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in an eagerly anticipated matchup at Shirk Center. Hanover knocked IWU out of last season's NCAA Division III Tournament at Shirk Center.
The Illinois College student section had fun despite the lopsided score, offering a light-hearted "Over-rated" chant at the Titans with the home team behind by 27 and yelling in unison "We're Down 40" after a Dauksas free throw put the second-half margin at 67-27.
Impressive surge propels Titans
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
ST. LOUIS -- Although few would have blamed him, Scott Trost's timeout at the 11:19 mark of the second half Saturday was not to admire his Illinois Wesleyan basketball team's handiwork.
Maybe Trost knew something. Maybe the streaking Titans weren't done.
They weren't.
Having scored 14 consecutive points before the timeout, IWU returned to the WU Field House floor to complete an awe-inspiring 21-0 run that highlighted an 83-56 thrashing of Washington University before a crowd of 1,309.
"Our defense was great. The intensity was there. We made it difficult for them to enter their offense," Trost said. "If we can develop an identity that we're going to be tough to score on -- and let that fuel our offense -- we're going to be awfully tough to beat."
Rebounding with a passion and a proficiency that produced a 43-23 margin on the boards, No. 1-ranked Wesleyan improved to 6-0. The Bears, who had won their last six games, fell with a thud to 6-3.
"That's one of the best Division III performances I've seen since I've been here," said 25th-year Washington coach Mark Edwards. "We were hanging close and all of a sudden they blow it open. They're a great team. They're experienced. They're well coached. They're No. 1."
A Zach Freeman dunk early in the second half had staked the Titans to a 47-34 lead. A pair of Scott Stone 3-pointers helped the Bears close within 51-42 before IWU took off.
With point guard Adam Dauksas directing the IWU transition game like a symphony orchestra conductor, the Titans began to dismantle the Bears.
Three-pointers from Mike McGraw and Keelan Amelianovich, both off Dauksas assists, triggered the landslide.
A Dauksas steal and a fast break feed for a McGraw layup boosted the Wesleyan margin to 59-42.
"Adam was pushing the ball like crazy," said McGraw, who was 4 of 5 from the field and 3 of 4 from 3-point range for 11 points. "He's the best at doing that."
Two Freeman free throws and two Amelianovich jumpers pushed the score to 65-42, and caused Trost to take a timeout.
"I wanted to give our guys a break," explained Trost. "Keelan and Adam needed some rest."
Another McGraw 3-pointer, a Chris Jones bank shot and a pair of Amelianovich free throws completed the 21-point blitz.
"It was awesome," said Dauksas, who scored a season-low five points but handed out 12 assists. "I love spreading the ball around. It's so much fun when everybody is finishing like that. It's more fun than scoring."
Amelianovich paced all scorers with 23 points, and Freeman added 16. Chris Jones turned in matching 13s with 13 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.
"That's the kind of streak we have when we're playing to our potential," said Amelianovich, who also grabbed seven rebounds. "It's good defense, good rebounding and we're running."
What did Edwards wish his team wasn't doing during the Titans' overwhelming surge?
"Playing Illinois Wesleyan," he quickly responded.
While the Titans were shooting 52.5 percent from the field, they were holding Washington to 32.7 percent.
Bears' big men Troy Ruths (14 points) and 7-footer Mike Grunst connected on only 6 of 28 shots.
"It's all about attitude and their approach," Trost said of his team. "Adam pushed the ball, and we have post players who can run as well as anybody's."
Freshman Tyler Nading added 13 for Washington, which trailed 42-34 at halftime.
IWU will tackle final examinations in the coming week and return to action next Saturday in a 7:30 p.m. game against Illinois College in Jacksonville.
Top-ranked Titans survive Chicago trip
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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CHICAGO -- Illinois Wesleyan's holiday season venture to the big city was hardly a relaxing trip Saturday.
Sure, the Titans drove past a world famous museum and the strangely renovated Soldier Field. Yet when IWU arrived at the Ratner Athletics Center, the hosts neither rolled out the welcome mat nor rolled over to the No. 1-ranked team in Division III.
Scrappy University of Chicago forced the Titans to hit seven of eight free throws in the final 41 seconds to escape with a 71-67 nonconference victory before a pro-IWU crowd of 877.
"They played with more urgency. They played pretty well and hit some big shots," Titans' coach Scott Trost said. "But we found a way to win. I won't apologize for a win on the road."
After outscoring its first four opponents all by at least 12 points, IWU (5-0) held a double figure lead just once at 62-51 after a Steve Schweer steal set up a Zach Freeman basket with 3:18 remaining. A Jesse Meyer 3-pointer, a Wesleyan turnover and a driving Brandon Woodhead basket brought Chicago (4-3) within 64-60 with 44 seconds left.
Two Adam Dauksas free throws and two more from Freeman let IWU breathe a bit easier with a 68-62 margin at the 29-second mark. Meyer responded by draining a 25-foot 3-pointer with 18 seconds left to make it a one-possession game.
Mike McGraw connected on two critical free throws to put Wesleyan back ahead by five. A Clay Carmody basket gave the Maroons time to foul McGraw again with 5.5 seconds left.
McGraw's first free throw was long, giving Chicago hope for a chance at a game-tying 3-pointer. But the senior guard sank the second shot for the final margin.
"I made it tough on myself," McGraw said. "I felt confident. I just had to calm down."
"Mike stepped up and made some big shots at the free throw line," said Trost.
Chicago pressed the Titans behind six 3-pointers and 20 points from Meyer and three 3-pointers and 18 points from Woodhead.
"Why don't we come out and play with urgency at the defensive end? I don't know," Trost said. "We have to value stops. We have to value every possession."
The Titans scored the first seven points of the second half on two Freeman baskets and a Dauksas 3-pointer. That 35-28 advantage never disappeared but was slashed as low as two at 44-42.
"I thought the difference was they hit three or four tough shots against good defense that we missed against good defense," Chicago coach Mike McGrath said. "We kept battling. I'm proud of the effort, but I'm not happy with the result."
Freeman paced IWU with 18 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Dauksas scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half, and Keelan Amelianovich added 12.
"Every time it seemed like we would break it out a little bit, they hit some key shots to stay in the game," said Freeman. "We need to get more defensive pressure inside and outside. We were weak today." IWU survived a disjointed first-half performance for a 28-28 tie at the break.
Holding their last lead of the opening half at 4-3, the Titans trailed 17-8 after a driving basket from Woodhead.
"We came out again real sluggish," McGraw said. "We definitely didn't play 40 minutes."
Two consecutive Freeman dunks -- the second a high-flying slam in transition -- brought Wesleyan within 24-23 at the 5:06 mark. Freeman rebounded his own miss with 28 seconds left to forge the halftime tie.
IWU shot 52 percent from the field and outrebounded Chicago, 31-30, but the Maroons grabbed 14 offensive rebounds. Chicago shot 45 percent from 3-point range and just 35 percent from inside the arc to finish at 38.6 percent.
"We rushed a couple of shots," said McGrath, "that as the year goes on we'll make."
IWU heads the other direction on Interstate 55 next Saturday to battle Washington University in a 3 p.m. game at St. Louis.
Stingy defense carries IWU
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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BLOOMINGTON -- Facing a basketball team averaging 83.7 points, a productive offense was an absolute must for Illinois Wesleyan Monday.
That Titans' burden, however, was made considerably lighter by a swarming defense.
Wesleyan held St. Xavier below 39 percent shooting in each half and cruised to an 81-61 victory over the No. 16-ranked team in NAIA Division I before a Shirk Center crowd of 2,000.
"Defensively, as a team, we were really good," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "I thought we wore them down a little bit with our (fast) break, but our defense fueled that."
Ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division III, the Titans improved to 4-0. St. Xavier, which defeated Division I Illinois-Chicago five days earlier, fell to 7-3.
IWU paid particular attention to Cougars' sharpshooters Jason Genova and Jason Reiter. Both were averaging 15 points and shooting over 50 percent from 3-point range entering the game. The Titans held the pair to two 3-pointers each and a combined 24 points.
"We called it Genova and Reiter awareness," said Trost. "(Jason) Fisher and Keelan (Amelianovich) really responded, and they had help from our post players as those kids were coming off screens."
The Titans' offense came from four players scoring in double figures led by Amelianovich with 26 and Zach Freeman with 17.
"They've always had top of the line NAIA players," said Amelianovich. "They've got some great shooters who have had a lot of success this year. We had to get out and get a little pressure on. Fortunately, we got some stops that converted into transition points for us."
The Titans closed the first half on a 17-6 run to claim a 40-29 lead.
A four-point play from Reiter with 1:34 before halftime had closed the IWU edge to five. But Amelianovich and Adam Dauksas nailed 3-pointers in the final 1:13.
The teams exchanged baskets for the first 12 minute of the second half. Five points from Freeman and four from Chris Jones keyed an 11-1 spurt that put St. Xavier away at 74-54 with 4:23 remaining.
"We didn't shoot the ball very well. We certainly let their shooter (Amelianovich) get as many shots as he needed to get," Cougars' coach Tom O'Malley said. "I don't make excuses. They played better. They deserve to win."
With his twin brother Cory limited to 12 minutes by illness, Chris Jones had by far his best game of the young season with 14 points and five rebounds off the bench. Chris had a total of five points and six rebounds while starting the first three games.
"Coach told me he needed me to start playing. I don't know what it was, but I was just in a little slump. I'm glad I played the way I played to get out of it," Chris Jones said. "That (not starting) helped me relax and it kind of motivated me, too.
"By him (Trost) benching me, it was kind of a wake up call that you need to get it together."
Freeman's 12 rebounds sparked the Titans to a 41-30 margin on the boards. Dauksas scored 13 points and had six assists to become the fourth player in school history with at least 400 career assists.
Dan Bolger paced St. Xavier with 16 points. Reiter added 14, Matt Marino 11 and Genova 10.
A. Freeman still sidelined
As feared, a magnetic resonance imaging test showed IWU junior Andrew Freeman has a stress fracture in his lower leg. He has yet to play this season and will be out of action at least two more weeks, according to IWU trainer Bill Kauth.
"In the next couple weeks, we'll try to start progressing him back into activity and see how he does," Kauth said. "If he has more pain, we'll have to back him off again."
Freeman pours in 30 as Titans dunk Olivet
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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BLOOMINGTON -- There was no sleight of hand happening behind the Shirk Center scorer's table Tuesday.
No creative button pushing made a 12-point Olivet Nazarene lead disappear into thin air. And no chicanery rapidly reduced an 18-point Illinois Wesleyan advantage to six.
A basketball game of such wild scoring swings begs for someone to seize control and hold on tight.
Zach Freeman, your table is ready.
Illinois Wesleyan's junior forward scored 22 of his career-high 30 points in a dominating second half performance to carry the Titans to an 87-68 nonconference victory over Olivet before a crowd of 1,500.
"I've said all along Zach's got the potential to be as good as he wants to be. That means as good as any player in our league," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "Athletically, Zach is as good as there is at this level. When he plays like that, we're really good."
Ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division III, the Titans improved to 3-0 while sending their NAIA Division I counterparts to 3-4.
Jason Fisher nailed two 3-pointers and Freeman had five points as IWU opened the second half with a 13-2 surge to assume a 56-38 lead with 17:10 remaining.
Olivet scored 13 of the next 15 points to move within 58-51 before Freeman hit two free throws and followed with a lighting-fast baseline drive punctuated with a powerful dunk.
"We were giving him the ball and he was making plays," said Wesleyan point guard Adam Dauksas.
The Tigers got as close as six before Freeman (13 points) and Keelan Amelianovich (eight) scored IWU's next 21 points to push the Titans' margin to 83-62.
"I seemed to be in the right place at the right time," said Freeman, who was 11 of 13 from the field, 8 of 9 at the free throw line and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. "My teammates found me about two inches from the basket so it's not hard to make layups.
"The second half was a little bit of what we can do. We were playing unselfishly, passing the ball, rebounding on the break and getting easy buckets. It definitely shows what we should be doing and what we can be doing."
Olivet committed just eight turnovers but could not prevent the Titans from shooting over 60 percent in both halves and finishing at 64 percent (32 of 50).
"They are so diverse in what they can do scoring -- inside, outside, transition," Tigers' coach Ralph Hodge said. "I thought we did some pretty good things defensively. But we didn't play every possession through. We took too many off. Their constant offensive and defensive pressure took a toll on us."
Hitting nine of its first 12 shots, Olivet enjoyed a 23-11 lead after a Nick Livas 3-pointer at the 12:37 mark of the opening half.
Dauksas scored 11 of his 14 points in a 14-2 IWU streak that forged a 25-25 tie.
"Our kids didn't panic when we got down 12. We had to execute and get down and defend. That kind of triggers us," Trost said. "We started out slow, but for 30 minutes we were pretty good. It seems like we need a little challenge for us to respond."
Amelianovich added 20 points and Cory Jones had six rebounds and a career-high four assists off the bench on his 22nd birthday.
Micah Lavender paced Olivet with 16 points, Normal West High School graduate Stan Chismark had 13 points and Phil French 12.
"I play with these guys all summer, and knew a lot of their tendencies. But we just couldn't stop them," said Chismark, who grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. "They were hitting on all cylinders."
IWU meets another NAIA Division I team and member of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference on Monday when St. Xavier visits Shirk Center for a 7:30 p.m. contest.
Dauksas, IWU rate highest at tipoff tourney
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. -- Perhaps practicing with the hope of reprising the chant later, the Wabash College student section let Illinois Wesleyan hear it Saturday.
"Over-rated. Over-rated."
This was not, mind you, late in the contest with the Little Giants in control. This happened 25 minutes before the game.
"It was kind of funny. They hadn't even seen us play," said IWU senior guard Adam Dauksas. "It kind of added some motivation. They probably shouldn't have done it, but it turned out best for us."
Wabash saw the No. 1-ranked Titans' best over a seven-minute stretch of the second half as Wesleyan broke open a tie game with a 19-1 spurt to cut down the Little Giants, 79-67, in the championship game of the Little Giants Tipoff Classic before a Chadwick Court crowd of 1,119.
Dauksas followed a four-turnover, six-point first half with 16 points and one turnover in the second as the Titans improved to 2-0. With 39 points and 12 assists in two games, Dauksas earned tournament Most Valuable Player honors.
"Adam refused to let us lose," Wesleyan coach Scott Trost said. "There was a stretch where players have to make plays and Adam made some plays. I'm glad he's on our side."
Dauksas scored 11 of IWU's first 15 second-half points to keep the Titans close after a 35-34 halftime deficit. Three-pointers from Dauksas and Mike McGraw snapped a 53-53 tie and sent Wesleyan on its way.
"I think we kind of panicked a little bit," said Wabash coach Mac Petty. "We got down six points and took some quick shots and didn't execute like we had been. You can't do that against a team like Illinois Wesleyan. Dauksas did a super job controlling the tempo, and he hit some big shots."
Two Zach Freeman free throws and a Jason Fisher jumper from the wing pushed the Titans' lead to 63-53. Fisher then nailed a 3-pointer before an Andrew Zimmer free throw broke a Little Giants' scoring drought of nearly five minutes.
Two Dauksas free throws and four Cory Jones points extended the Wesleyan advantage to 72-54 with 3:04 remaining.
"People don't understand how good Wabash is. They pointed to this game for a long time," Trost said. "To come in their house and win, I'm very proud of our guys."
While the Titans nailed 6 of 9 from 3-point range and shot 54 percent overall in the second half, they dominated the boards the entire game.
Jones hauled down 13 rebounds and set a tournament record with 24 rebounds over two games. Freeman and Keelan Amelianovich grabbed eight each as IWU enjoyed a 42-25 rebounding margin.
"We knew they were a big team and we had to fight for every board," said Jones, who added 12 points and two blocks. "We came in with kind of a chip on our shoulders saying 'no one can outrebound us.' We pounded the boards as hard as we could and got the job done."
Freeman, who joined Dauksas on the all-tournament team, chipped in 15 points and Fisher 10 and a career-high six rebounds.
"I thought Zach really responded to a below par game for him last (Friday) night," Trost said. "He played with a lot more energy. That's the Zach Freeman we all know."
Wabash (1-1) rode the hot shooting of Kyle Medeiros early. The senior guard scored 15 of the Little Giants' first 25 points. He finished with 17, none in the second half.
Andrew Zimmer and Adonis Joseph had 10 points each. Zimmer and Medeiros were all-tournament selections.
After 24 points in Wesleyan's win over Texas-Dallas on Friday, Amelianovich scored just two points on a pair of free throws late in the first half. It was just the fourth time in 56 games as a starter Amelianovich was held below double figures and his lowest output over that span.
IWU opens its home season Tuesday as Olivet Nazarene (3-3) visits Shirk Center for a 7:30 p.m. nonconference game.
Alma-Texas-Dallas
Mark Barnes' jumper with four seconds left gave Alma (1-1) a 71-69 victory over Texas-Dallas (0-2) in the third-place game.
Cory Massey paced Alma with 24 points and Barnes added 16. Jay Swafford and Martin Salinas scored 19 each for Texas-Dallas.
Salinas and Barnes were part of the all-tournament team.
Titans get past jitters, Comets
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
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CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. -- Opening-game jitters and offensive sloppiness were annoying but far from fatal to the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team Friday.
The perimeter shooting of Keelan Amelianovich and a sturdy defense proved sufficient as the Titans turned away the University of Texas at Dallas, 71-58, in the opening game of the Little Giant Tipoff Classic at Chadwick Court.
"We hadn't practiced well the last week and it carried over into tonight," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "There's a lot of room for improvement. We have to get a lot better in 24 hours."
Actually, the Titans have less time than that before meeting host Wabash in today's 2 p.m. (CST) championship game. The Little Giants downed Alma, 73-54, in Friday's second game. Alma and Texas-Dallas meet at noon for third place,
Ranked No. 1 nationally, IWU shot 41 percent from the field but limited the Comets to 36 percent and nailed its final 15 free throws and 16 of 17 overall (94 percent).
"The first game it's tough to get in a groove," said Amelianovich, who led all scorers with 24 points and became the 36th player in school history to surpass the 1,000-point career milestone. "We got a lot going from our defense, which is good. Now we have to round out our complete game."
Texas-Dallas (0-1) cut the IWU lead to 40-34 on a Kersh Milson 3-pointer at the 13:55 mark of the second half before Amelianovich fired in a 3-pointer in transition.
Another Amelianovich 3-pointer and an Adam Dauksas steal and layup pushed the Wesleyan margin to 48-34.
"Keelan hit some big threes but we have to work harder offensively," said Trost. "At times I thought we were selfish and didn't make the extra pass."
Amelianovich was 6 of 11 from beyond the arc and added four rebounds and three steals.
"He's a great offensive player. He's strong, he's big and he can shoot," Texas-Dallas coach Terry Butterfield said. "He's a rare kid in Division III who can stop and jump shoot over somebody. To me, that's a Division I skill.
"I was disappointed we didn't crowd him more. We knew what he was going to do and he did it anyway."
The Titans led 54-38 on a Mike McGraw 3-pointer with 8:55 to go. But these Comets weren't ready to flame out quite yet.
Texas-Dallas got as close as 62-52 but an Amelianovich 3-pointer from the corner with 1:10 left sealed the outcome.
"I had my legs, but I was a little bit off," Amelianovich said of early shooting problems he shared with his teammates. "But my shots felt good and they started to fall eventually."
McGraw chipped in 10 points and teamed with Jason Fisher to hold Comets' sharpshooter Martin Salinas to 5 of 14 accuracy and 12 points.
"The main thing was to be there on the catch," McGraw said. "He's not afraid to shoot it from anywhere."
"Mike and Fish did a good job chasing him around and making him work for his shots," said Trost. "Offensively, we didn't do a lot of great things. But defensively we made them take some tough shots."
Dauksas had 17 points and seven assists, while Cory Jones came off the bench to contribute nine points, 11 rebounds and three blocks.
Milson and Jay Swafford chipped in 11 each for the Comets, who were outrebounded, 41-34. "Our kids competed hard," Butterfield said. "But we were very inefficient in what we wanted to do. Part of that is they are a very talented team."
Woeful offensively for most of the first half, IWU began to click a bit over the final four minutes.
A Zach Freeman jumper snapped an 18-18 tie and started a 12-2 Titans' run. Three-pointers from Amelianovich and McGraw staked IWU to a 30-20 halftime edge.
"That was not how we wanted to start," McGraw said. "Offensively, we didn't execute very well."
IWU sank just one of its first eight shots and committed four turnovers in the first six minutes, but Texas-Dallas led only 8-3.
Nussbaum out for season
IWU sophomore Brian Nussbaum will miss the entire season after surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
Nussbaum received the vast majority of his playing time on the Titans' junior varsity last season and saw action in four varsity games.
Missed foul shots hurt Titans, but Trost 'proud' of team's hard play
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
CHAMPAIGN -- The pressure of playing before a decidedly orange crowd of over 16,000 did not seem to bother the Illinois Wesleyan basketball team Thursday.
Until, that is, the Division III Titans stood still.
Early free throw difficulty and second half weariness were minor negatives to an IWU team that trailed the University of Illinois by just one with 13:20 remaining before the Division I Illini pulled away for an 82-60 exhibition victory at the Assembly Hall.
"I told the players before the game the greatest compliment somebody can pay you is to say you played really hard," Titans' coach Scott Trost said. "I thought we did. I'm so proud of my kids. I don't think anybody out there will say we didn't compete."
IWU missed its first four shots before Chris Jones connected, and the Titans misfired on six of their initial nine free throws.
Still, Wesleyan was tied 7-7 and trailed just 17-14 with the help of a 14-10 rebounding edge at the 8:14 mark of the first half.
"Once we got between the lines and the ball was jumped, it was like every other game. You didn't really notice the people around you," said IWU guard Adam Dauksas. "We looked around at each other before the game and said 'we belong. We can play out here.' That's what we wanted to do, just earn some respect here."
A Mike McGraw 3-pointer at the 1:27 mark of the first half brought the Titans within 33-29 and Illinois took a 37-31 lead into halftime.
"It was 37-31, we gave up five transition points and from the free throw line we were 7 of 15," Trost said. "We could have been ahead."
A Jason Fisher 3-pointer at the 14:37 mark gave the Titans a 41-41 tie that stood for a mere seven seconds when Illinois All-America guard Dee Brown sprinted down court for a layup.
"They played strong and they played well. They did some things to us," Brown said. "They went over screens and they packed their defense in. They're a good team."
Another Fisher 3-pointer cut the IWU deficit to 45-44 before Illinois reeled off 10 straight points. A 26-7 Illini run put the game away at 71-51 as the Titans had post players Steve Schweer and Zach Freeman foul out.
"Our effort was good. Size wise they had an advantage, and we were without Cory Jones (broken hand), our strongest post player," said Trost. "They're big and strong, and they kind of wore us down."
Dauksas and fellow senior Keelan Amelianovich led the Titans with 13 points apiece.
"We wanted to leave an impression that we played hard as a team. I think we did that for most of the game," Amelianovich said. "We did get winded down the stretch. But it was a great experience for everyone. We can refer back to this throughout the season. We want to hold on to this as long as possible."
IWU trailed Illinois in rebounding, 18-17, at halftime but the Illini's final margin on the boards was 36-25.
"They're going to be good," said Trost. "We're going to be good, too. We have to go from here and get better. I challenged them afterward not to be satisfied or content and elevate their game."
Chris Jones added nine points and a team-high five rebounds for IWU. Fisher chipped in eight points.
Dauksas, who also had five assists and two steals, did allow himself to soak in the surroundings the Titans don't usually experience in small college basketball.
"At times they were shooting free throws you had to look around and see and take it all in," he said. "For 30 minutes, it was a game. We played hard. But as hard as we played for those 30 minutes, we have to play that hard for all 40."
IWU opens its regular season Nov. 18 against Texas-Dallas at the Wabash Tournament in Crawfordsville, Ind.
"I think the kids learned a lot. They learned how hard they have to play," said Trost. "This will help us in the long run."
(Friday 10/21/05)
Tough break: IWU's Cory Jones out again
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
BLOOMINGTON -- It's happened to Cory Jones again.
The Illinois Wesleyan senior center has suffered a preseason injury for the second straight season, and will miss four to six weeks with a broken left hand.
"The first week of practice two years in a row, what's the chances of that?" lamented Jones Thursday. "At practice Tuesday I went up for a layup with two defenders and jammed it on the backboard."
After initially thinking the injury was not serious, Jones had his hand swell the remainder of practice. X-rays revealed a fracture to the fourth metacarpal in the 6-foot-6 senior's left hand.
Jones will be examined by Dr. Anthony Dustman today. Surgery to repair the hand could be performed Monday.
"It's unfortunate," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "But better now than later and better a hand than a foot. It's his left hand so it's not his shooting hand. Hopefully, he'll be ready for the start of the year (Nov. 18).
"It gives somebody else an opportunity. Somebody has to step up and take advantage of it whether it be Chris (Jones), Steve (Schweer) or Andrew (Freeman). Fortunately, we have some depth there."
Jones was limited to three starts and 14 games last season by a broken foot.
"As long as I'm back for the season and I can help my team win when it counts," he said. "I'll still be able to do all the running exercises."
Illini game approaching
IWU's exhibition game against Division I national runner-up Illinois is less than two weeks away. The Titans and Illini will square off Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. at the Assembly Hall in Champaign.
"We want to go out there and compete and have a lot of our stuff ready," Trost said. "But at the same time, I don't want our kids to focus solely on Illinois.
"If you get so excited and emotionally psyched up for that game, everything else seems like a letdown. The most important thing to us is the league and getting in the NCAA Tournament."
Freshmen impressing
A freshman group that includes forward Brett Chamernik and guards Teddy Toliver, Jordan Morris, Andrew Gilmore and Matt Bone is off to a good start, according to Trost.
"We have some quality freshmen who are good enough to play in this league," said the IWU coach. "It's early yet though. We'll see how they react to game situations. But I'm happy with what they've done so far."
Trost said his freshmen have to realize varsity playing time will be difficult to come by on a veteran IWU squad.
"It will be hard to make our top 10," he said. "These guys have to use this year to get stronger, develop, learn our system and know their time will come. Next year a lot of those freshmen and sophomores are going to see quality minutes. They have to use this year as an opportunity to get better."
Tournament expansion
It has been known the NCAA Division III Tournament would expand from 48 teams this season. The question of just how big that expansion will be was answered this week.
This year's event will feature 59 teams because of the NCAA's new playoff ratio of one tournament slot for every 6.5 teams eligible for the postseason.
"It's a great thing for our league. This league is deserving of more than one team," Trost said. "Hopefully now the second place team in our conference and maybe the third place team will have the opportunity to get into the tournament."
The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin is among 37 leagues that receive automatic NCAA bids this season. The at-large bids for remaining teams in those conferences has risen to 18. Four bids go to teams outside automatic bid conferences.
Five teams will get first-round byes. Five first-round games will be played March 2 to see who will face the top five seeds two days later.
In another change from past tournaments, the remaining 44 teams will meet in 11 four-team regionals March 3-4 at campus sites.
(Saturday 10/15/05)
IWU opens practice with top dozen back
By Randy Reinhardt
rreinhardt@pantagraph.com
BLOOMINGTON -- Highly anticipated basketball seasons are hardly unusual at Illinois Wesleyan.
Still, this is no ordinary talented Titans' team ready to open practice Sunday at Shirk Center.
"I'm excited. It should be a great year," IWU coach Scott Trost said. "We've got our top 12 guys back."
Let that last sentence sink in for a moment.
And the Titans not only return their "top 12 guys," they do so from a 21-5 team that won its third straight College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championship last season.
"You can't teach experience. This group has been through a lot," said Trost. "We've experienced a lot of success. We have high expectations. We're looking forward to the challenge."
The preseason No. 1 team in Division III of Street and Smith's magazine, Wesleyan welcomes back the rarity of two previous CCIW Most Outstanding Players in Keelan Amelianovich and Adam Dauksas.
Both seniors and preseason All-America selections, Amelianovich is a sharpshooting 6-foot-6 forward who averaged 17.9 points. Dauksas is the big game tested point guard who scores from outside or inside and averaged 15.1 points.
"Last year we were the second rated team in the country. We always have high expectations so I don't think that really means anything other than you have a huge bull's eye on your back," Trost said. "It's a situation where we've got to come ready to play and take everybody's best effort."
Junior Zach Freeman averaged 14.2 points and 6.8 rebounds last season. IWU's enviable depth features plenty more experience in guards Matt Arnold, Jason Fisher and Mike McGraw, forwards Steve Schweer and Andrew Freeman and centers Chris Jones and Cory Jones.
"We have guys who I feel very, very confident in their abilities," Trost said. "That gives us a lot of versatility and makes us a better basketball team."
The Titans will get an early test less than three weeks after practice opens with a Nov. 3 exhibition game at the University of Illinois. The regular season begins Nov. 18 against Texas-Dallas at the Wabash Tournament.
"I want to have a lot of our stuff in by the time we play Illinois," Trost said. "There is a lot of stuff on my board right now and the top 10 could run most of it. But the dilemma I have right now is our upperclassmen know everything we're doing and 12 guys don't know anything. To try and fit those together can be a little difficult."
The Titans get a rematch with Hanover, the team that knocked them out of the NCAA Division III Tournament last season, Dec. 20 at Shirk Center. That will be a reminder of IWU's goal for success at the national level.
"We need to go a little further," Trost said. "These (senior) kids know it's their last go 'round."