The Illinois Tech Men’s Basketball team drove west on December 13 to take on the Cornell College Rams. Illinois Tech led by six at halftime but ultimately fell 69-64.

How it Happened

• After a back-and-forth early portion of the game, the Scarlet Hawks took a five point advantage with 7:24 left in the first half on a Jake Digiorgio jumper to go up 22-17.
• Cornell would rally back to lead by as much as four in the first half, but Illinois Tech ended the half on a 7-0 run thanks to five Malik Howze points.
• The early second half lead reached as high as 10, as Anthony Mosley Jr. scored four of the team’s first six points. Illinois Tech led 40-30 with 18:51 left in the contest.
• Cornell slowly chipped away at the lead, coming to within one with 11:40 left before breaking through with 7:09 remaining, going ahead 54-52.
• The Rams never trailed the rest of the way. Down six with 22 seconds to go, Howze nailed a three to pull Illinois Tech to within three. After Cornell missed two free throws to give the Hawks a chance to tie, a Howze three hit back iron, leading to an ensuing Rams rebound and two made foul shots to seal the win.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Howze had 21 points to lead all scorers. He also had four assists and three steals while going five-of-nine from beyond the arc.
• Digiorgio had a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds.
• Parker Joncus hit three shots from downtown.

Stats to Know

• Illinois Tech fell to 6-3 on the season while Cornell moved to 5-3.
• The Rams shot significantly better in the second half (46.2%) than the first (37.5%).
• Illinois Tech was out rebounded 46-35 by Cornell.

Up Next

• Illinois Tech will host Fontbonne University on Monday, December 18 at 7 p.m. Live audio, video, and stats will be available. The live audio will be powered by Illinois Media School.