The game was a back-and-forth affair for the first 45 minutes before Elmhurst took control in the second extra period. The game featured a whopping 12 ties and 18 lead changes. Kalamazoo scored with one second remaining in regulation to force overtime and Elmhurst forced a second overtime with a put-back with one tick left.
Despite shooting just 38 percent from the floor in the first half (12-of-31), Elmhurst trailed Kalamazoo by just a point (32-31) at halftime.
Elmhurst slowly began to pull away in the second half, building a seven point advantage and leading by six (63-57) with two minutes to play. After Kalamazoo cut the lead to five, Tyler Worst canned a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left to cut the lead to two points. A Brian Lee free throw put Elmhurst back up by three with nine seconds remaining. Pat Clancy connected on a 3-pointer with one second remaining to send the game to overtime.
In the first OT, Elmhurst grabbed a quick lead on a Chris Ihlenfeldt 3-pointer. Kalamazoo scored the next five points to take a two-point lead. With Kalamazoo leading by one, Chris Martin hit a jumper with under 30 seconds to put Elmhurst up 73-72. A Kyle Konwinski triple with 10 seconds to play gave Kalamazoo a two-point lead. After Martin missed a jumper, Nick Michael grabbed the offensive board but his shot was no good. Brent Ruch grabbed the rebound and hist put back beat the buzzer to send the game to a second overtime.
Elmhurst grabbed a quick lead in the second overtime and never gave it up. The Bluejays built a six-point advantage before Kalamazoo was able to cut the lead to three on a 3-point play from Mat Kellogg. The Bluejays answered right back with a trey from Ihlenfeldt. The Bluejays were able to seal the game from the free throw line and come away with the 10-point win.
Elmhurst finished the game shooting 44.6 percent from the floor (29-of-65) and 25 percent from 3-point range (4-of-16). The Bluejays hit 26-of-41 free throws (63.4 percent).
Kalamazoo hit 41.2 percent of its shots (28-of-68) from the floor and 29.6 percent (8-of-27) from downtown. Kalamazoo finished 14-of-19 from the free throw line (73.7 percent).
The Bluejays dominated on the glass, finishing with a 50-37 advantage.
Martin had another strong game to lead the Bluejays, finishing with 33 points on 10-of-20 shooting. He also pulled down eight rebounds and had three steals in the win. Michael chipped in with a double-double; 15 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Ruch scored 12 points off the bench and Ihlenfeldt finished with seven points. Lee totaled six points and seven assists.
Kalamazoo was led by Konwinski's 22 points. Kellogg chipped in with 14 points while Henry McCain came off the bench to score 11.
Elmhurst hosts Rockford College on Saturday, December 10.