The two teams battled back and forth throughout the game, with the Titans holding a 40-39 lead at halftime. With 3:40 left in the game Thunder senior Jon Nielson drained a three-pointer to tie the game at 70-70. However the Titans countered when Zach Freeman scored a basket with 3:05 left in the game that started a 10-1 run for the guests that lasted 3:10 and increased the Illinois Wesleyan lead to 80-71 with 25-seconds left in the game. A late basket by the Thunder with seven seconds left in the game cut the Titans’ advantage to 80-73, but Wheaton could not get closer.
"In that stretch we had two putbacks," said Illinois Wesleyan coach Scott Trost, "two dribble drives, we ran the clock down and got a layup."
Senior Jonathan Steven led the Thunder with 24 points, including four three-point field goals and 11 rebounds. Nielson was 5-for-8 from the field with a 4-for-6 effort from three point range, a 6-for-8 outing at the free throw line and eight assists. Freshman guard Kent Raymond scored 19 points, with four three-point field goals. Senior forward Martin Trimiew grabbed nine rebounds, with five assists and two blocked shots. Senior center Jim Fortosis scored five points, with six rebounds and three blocked shots.
Zach Freeman led four Titan players in double digits with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Guard Adam Dauksas scored 16 points with two steals. Keelan Amelianovich scored 15 points and freshman guard Matt Arnold added 12 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the field. Steve Schweer scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds.
"I thought this was a good experience for Matt," said Trost. "The first five to six minutes he was hesitant but this was good for him.
"He gives us the great ability to handle the ball and to push it other than having Dauksas bring it up."
Wheaton shot 59.1% (13-22) from the field in the first half and dropped to 38.7% (12-31) in the second half, for a 47.2% (25-53) field goal percentage in the game. The Thunder shot 41.4% (12-29) from three-point range and 61.1% (11-18) from the free throw line. Illinois Wesleyan shot 46.9% (30-64) from the field, with 50% (6-12) from three-point range and 70% (14-20) from the free throw line. The Titans outrebounded Wheaton 38-35, with a critical 14-9 edge on the offensive glass to help the guests outscore the Thunder 14-0 in second chance points. The Titans also outscored Wheaton 44-18 in the paint.
Illinois Wesleyan vs Wheaton College 1/15/05 7:30 PM at King Arena - Wheaton, Ill. At King Arena - Wheaton, Ill. ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 80, WHEATON COLLEGE 73 ILLINOIS WESLEYAN (11-2/2-0 CCIW) Freeman, Zach 9-18 1-4 19; Dauksas, Adam 4-16 6-7 16; Amelianovich, Keelan 5-13 3-4 15; Arnold, Matt 5-6 0-0 12; Schweer, Steve 3-3 2-3 8; Freeman, Andrew 3-3 0-0 6; Jones, Chris 1-3 2-2 4; McGraw, Mike 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 30-64 14-20 80. WHEATON COLLEGE (10-3/0-2 CC1W) Steven, Jonathan 10-18 0-1 24; Nielson, Jon 5-8 6-8 20; Raymond, Kent 6-11 3-4 19; Fortosis, Jim 2-4 1-1 5; Trimiew, Martin 2-5 1-3 5; Lettinga, Andrew 0-2 0-1 0; Bollier, Tony 0-5 0-0 0. Totals 25-53 11-18 73. Illinois Wesleyan............. 40 40 - 80 Wheaton College............... 39 34 - 73 3-point goals-Illinois Wesleyan 6-12 (Dauksas, Adam 2-5; Amelianovich, Keelan 2-4; Arnold, Matt 2-3), Wheaton College 12-29 (Nielson, Jon 4-6; Raymond, Kent 4-8; Steven, Jonathan 4-8; Lettinga, Andrew 0-2; Bollier, Tony 0-5). Fouled out--Illinois Wesleyan-Jones, Chris, Wheaton College-None. Rebounds-Illinois Wesleyan 38 (Freeman, Zach 11), Wheaton College 35 (Steven, Jonathan 11). Assists-Illinois Wesleyan 9 (Dauksas, Adam 6), Wheaton College 14 (Nielson, Jon 8). Total fouls-Illinois Wesleyan 16, Wheaton College 16.