MOUNT VERNON, Iowa – The Illinois College men's basketball team struggled in the first half and fell behind Cornell College by 15 at halftime before making a game of it late. With the clock working against them, the Blueboys came up short in their comeback effort, falling 72-69. The loss drops IC to 4-13 (2-8 Midwest Conference) on the season.
Illinois College could not get the ball to go down in the opening 20 minutes, shooting 10-of-30 from the floor. The Rams started the game on a 7-0 run and opened up their largest lead of the contest, 38-20, with just over three minutes to go before the break.
A 9-0 run for the Blueboys quickly trimmed the lead to single-digits early in the second half, but Cornell was able to repel the comeback and push the lead back up to 15, 60-45, with 10 minutes remaining. Refusing to go away, a late surge brought Illinois College back within four, 68-64, on a three-ball from
Riley Mehrens with just over two minutes left. With just under a minute to go,
Jake Mazrimas laid one in to make it 69-66.
After making a defensive stop, Illinois College came down the floor with a chance to tie, but Mazrimas was whistled for an offensive foul in the final 20 seconds. Cornell hit its free throws down the stretch to put the game out of reach.
Mehrens and
Tre Rogers led IC with 15 points on the afternoon. Mazrimas had 14 and
Hunter Ottensmeier came off the bench for 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds.
The Blueboys return to action on Jan. 31 with a 5:30 p.m. game at Lake Forest College.
