BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Carroll men's basketball made the long Wednesday night trek to Bloomington, Ill., where they fell to the #3-ranked Titans of Illinois Wesleyan by an overtime score of 81-78. The defeat extends the Carroll (6-12, 2-7 CCIW) losing skid to three games. Illinois Wesleyan (17-2, 9-1 CCIW) picked up their eighth-consecutive conference victory with the win.
Carroll shot just under 38 percent from the field in the physical defensive battle, including 25 percent from beyond the arc. Carroll forced the Titans to 15 turnovers and corralled 19 offensive boards to Ill. Wesleyan's 12.
The game's leading scorer was Titan senior Nick Roper, who scored 27 points in 39 minutes of play. The Pioneers were led in scoring by senior Erik Victorson, who scored 20 points 15 of which came in the first half. That marks the fourth game this season Victorson has scored 20 or more points. Victorson was joined in double-figures by fellow seniors Kobe SImpson and Aaron Wafford, who chipped in 15 and 12 points, respectively. Junior center Jacob Naber narrowly missed a double-double, leading the Pioneers on the glass with 10 rebounds to go along with nine points.
Both teams set the tone early, going punch-for-punch for the first six minutes as neither team got up by more than one possession. Illinois Wesleyan grew their largest lead of the contest to 12 points over the next seven minutes thanks to a 9-2 run. The Pios responded and began to chip into the lead, spending the following five minutes outscoring the Titans 19-10 to draw within three points yet again, capped off by a Victorson 3 off a Kobe Simpson assist. The Titans made one last bucket and the two teams went into the locker room with a 39-34 advantage for the Titans.
Illinois Wesleyan held the two-possession lead for the first five minutes of the period, but five points from Wafford and Lamar Smith, as well as a poke and score from Justin Steinike gave Carroll their largest lead of the game at 51-46, capping off a 12-1 spurt in just over two minutes.
Illinois Wesleyan managed to tie the game back up a few minutes later, but strong defense from both ends down the stretch held the teams deadlocked at 64 with 3:20 remaining. Down three, the Pioneers turned to their presence inside, as Kobe and Naber both got to the line on attempts inside the restricted zone, both making crucial sets of free throws to close out regulation and send the game to overtime.
In the extra period, both teams exchanged free throws and layups for much of the five minutes, as the score was within one basket to either side for four minutes and 42 seconds. A pair of Titan free throws stretched the lead to three and Carroll had two good looks at three in the closing seconds, but could not get one to fall, as the Pioneers fell 81-78 in the hard-fought defeat.
Carroll returns to action on Saturday February, 1 where they will return to the friendly confines of Van Male Fieldhouse for the first time in four games to host Millikin University on Faculty & Staff Appreciation Day. Carroll will look to avenge the road loss they suffered to the Bug Blue nearly a month ago, with tip-off scheduled for 4:15 p.m
