Ritzel Sends Blueboys to Fourth-Straight Victory

BELOIT, Wis. – Buzz Ritzel scored 31 points and the Illinois College men's basketball team posted its fourth straight win, beating Beloit, 71-62, on Wednesday night at Flood Arena.

The victory pushed IC to 10-4 overall and 3-2 in Midwest Conference play. Beloit dropped to 5-6 overall and 2-2 in conference action.

IC 71 Beloit 62
The Blueboys took an 8-6 lead on an Austin Robinson basket 4:05 into the game and never trailed again. IC pushed its lead to as much as 15 points three times during the opening frame including a 39-24 advantage at halftime.

In the second half, IC's lead grew to as much as 20 at 51-31 with 13 minutes to play. Beloit made a push and cut the lead to as little as seven (55-48) with 5:25 left but Ritzel answered by scoring 12 of his 31 in the game's final five minutes to ice the contest for the Blueboys.

Along with Ritzel's output, IC got a big night from Josh Harris. Harris stuffed the box score with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and a team-high four assists. He also scored the 1,000th point of his career in the first half. Seth Doss added 13 points and eight boards for the victors.

Blue Notes
Harris became the 32nd player in IC history to score 1,000 points in a Blueboy uniform and now has 1,007 in his career. Harris joined classmate Ritzel in the 1,000-point club (Ritzel reached the milestone on December 20th)… The Blueboys have won 42 of their last 51 games (42-9) and 59 of the past 68 (59-9). IC has also won 31 of its previous 37 Midwest Conference contests… IC is in a stretch of playing seven of eight games on the road.
 
Up Next
The Wisconsin swing continues for the Blueboys as they travel to Ripon for a Midwest Conference contest on Saturday. The game time is set for 3:00 pm.