Wheaton’s biggest lead of the second half was a 65-45 advantage with 9:40 remaining in the game. At that point Elmhurst began the first of two critical second half runs to trim Wheaton’s lead. The guests out-scored Wheaton 15-3 to cut the Thunder lead to 68-60 with 5:25 left in the game. Wheaton managed to rebuild its lead to a 13-point advantage with the hosts on top by a score of 75-62 with 4:25 remaining in the contest. Elmhurst then used a 13-3 scoring spurt for its second rally of the final 10 minutes to cut Wheaton’s lead to 78-75 with 25-seconds left in the game. The Thunder shot 6-for-6 at the free throw line in the final 25-seconds of the contest to secure the victory. Bluejays’ standout Chris Martin scored 14 of his 22 second half points in the final 9:30 of the game to spark the two critical Elmhurst rallies.
Freshman guard Kent Raymond led the Thunder with 18 points, as he was 3-for-5 from three-point range and 7-for-7 at the free throw line. Senior Jonathan Steven scored 16 points with six rebounds. Junior guard Tony Bollier scored 15 points with a 3-for-5 effort from behind the three-point arc and four assists. Senior Jon Nielson was the fourth Thunder player to score in double digits, as he scored 13 points, with five assists. Senior center Jim Fortosis scored nine points on 4-for-6 shooting from the field and Andrew Lettinga added seven points with four rebounds.
Martin led the Bluejays with 30 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals. Sophomore Nick Michael added 12 points and David Gershenzon added eight points for the guests.
After shooting 70.8% (17-24) from the field in the first half, Wheaton’s second half field goal percentage fell to 38.1% (8-21) as the Thunder shot 55.6% (25-45) from the floor in the game. Wheaton shot 44.4% (8-18) from three-point range and posted a season-high 89.7% (26-29) free throw percentage. Elmhurst shot 42.6% (23-54) from the field, with 33.3% (5-15) from three-point range and 75% (24-32) from the free throw line. Wheaton out-rebounded the Bluejays 28-25, but Elmhurst held an 8-5 advantage on the offensive glass.
Elmhurst vs Wheaton College 1/22/05 7:30 PM at King Arena - Wheaton, Ill. At King Arena - Wheaton, Ill. WHEATON COLLEGE 84, ELMHURST 75 ELMHURST (10-6/2-4 CCIW) Martin, Chris 9-17 9-13 30; Michael, Nick 4-10 4-5 12; Gershenzon, David 1-7 5-6 8; Patchett, Evan 2-5 3-4 7; Trierweiler, Patrick 2-3 3-4 7; Ihlenfeldt, Chris 3-5 0-0 7; Brizzolara, Jay 2-4 0-0 4; Lee, Brian 0-2 0-0 0; Schau, Craig 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 24-32 75. WHEATON COLLEGE (12-3/2-2 CCIW) Raymond, Kent 4-9 7-7 18; Steven, Jonathan 6-11 4-4 16; Bollier, Tony 4-6 4-5 15; Nielson, Jon 3-6 6-7 13; Fortosis, Jim 4-6 1-2 9; Lettinga, Andrew 2-2 2-2 7; Trimiew, Martin 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 25-45 26-29 84. Elmhurst...................... 26 49 - 75 Wheaton College............... 43 41 - 84 3-point goals-Elmhurst 5-15 (Martin, Chris 3-5; Gershenzon, David 1-3; Ihlenfeldt, Chris 1-3; Brizzolara, Jay 0-1; Schau, Craig 0-1; Patchett, Evan 0-1; Michael, Nick 0-1), Wheaton College 8-18 (Bollier, Tony 3-5; Raymond, Kent 3-5; Nielson, Jon 1-3; Lettinga, Andrew 1-1; Trimiew, Martin 0-1; Steven, Jonathan 0-3). Fouled out--Elmhurst-None, Wheaton College-Lettinga, Andrew; Trimiew, Martin; Fortosis, Jim. Rebounds-Elmhurst 25 (Martin, Chris 11), Wheaton College 28 (Steven, Jonathan 6). Assists-Elmhurst 9 (Martin, Chris 4), Wheaton College 13 (Nielson, Jon 5). Total fouls-Elmhurst 24, Wheaton College 24.