McLean County Times

Illinois Wesleyan University's men's basketball team secured a spot in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament Championship by defeating North Central College 66-62. The game took place on Friday night, February 23, at the Shirk Center in Bloomington, Illinois. With this victory, the Titans improved their season record to 19-7, while the Cardinals ended their season with a 10-17 record.

This win marks Illinois Wesleyan's first appearance in the CCIW Tournament Championship since 2020. The Titans are set to face Elmhurst in the championship game on Saturday night, February 24, at 7:30 p.m., following the IWU women's basketball team's match against Carroll University at 3:30 p.m.

The Titans were initially trailing by eight points but managed to come back with consistent shooting. They finished with a field goal percentage of 54.5%, making 24 out of 44 shots. Their performance included seven three-pointers out of eighteen attempts and eleven successful free throws from fifteen attempts. In contrast, North Central College cooled off after a strong start and completed only four free throw attempts.

Ryan Sroka led Illinois Wesleyan's scoring efforts with fifteen points, while Nick Roper contributed twelve points and eight rebounds. Luke Yoder added nine points alongside teammates Hakim Williams and Trey Bazzell.

At halftime, trailing by one point at 36-35, Harrison Wilmsen scored to put the Titans ahead early in the second half. The team then extended their lead before North Central tied it up again later in the game. Key plays from Sroka and Roper helped maintain IWU's advantage until Yoder sealed the win with crucial free throws in the final seconds.

Illinois Wesleyan will compete against Elmhurst for the tournament title inside Shirk Center on Saturday evening.