Box Score

ELMHURST, Ill. - The Elmhurst College men's basketball team won its third straight contest by toppling Loras College 76-68 in front of a home crowd at R.A. Faganel Hall.

Elmhurst (3-4) led the majority of the way, trailing only twice to Loras (2-7). The Bluejays used a 9-0 run midway through the opening half to turn an 18-18 tie into a 27-18 advantage. Elmhurst led 38-31 at halftime.

The DuHawks battled back in the second half, opening the half on a 14-7 run to knot the score at 45-all. The Bluejays responded with a 16-5 run to open up an 11-point advantage with seven minutes to play, Loras managed to chip the Bluejays' lead down to five points (65-60) with just under three minutes to play, but four straight points for the Bluejays helped put the game out of reach.

Loras outshot Elmhurst 45.9 percent (25-of-55) to 39.6 percent (21-of-53). Both teams shot 40 percent from behind the arc, with Elmhurst connecting on 8-of-20 attempts and Loras hitting 10-of-25 three-point attempts.

The Bluejays iced the game from the foul line, shooting 26-of-35 (74.3) percent, including 18-of-24 (74.3 percent) in the second half.

Elmhurst limited its number of mistakes, turning the ball over a season-low seven times in the victory. The Bluejays converted 16 turnovers by the DuHawks into 15 points. Elmhurst also excelled on the glass in the second half. The Bluejays finished the game with a 37-32 rebounding advantage, including a 22-13 edge in the second half.

Mike McCurdy paced Elmhurst in the win, registering a game-high 17 points while shooting 6-of-11 from the floor. Zack Boyd added 16 points for Elmhurst, finishing 10-of-14 from the foul line and 2-of-2 from downtown. Erik Ellingson added nine points and Aaron Schroeder scored seven for Elmhurst. Freshman Nick Sanford pulled down a season-high 11 rebounds to go along with five points.

Four players reached double figures in scoring for Loras. Mike Gleason totaled 16 points to lead the DuHawks while Dan Pawelski and Tim Kelly finished with 14 points apiece. Connor Mooney totaled 11 points and a game-high seven assists in the loss.

Elmhurst takes on Aurora University on December 20 in the Las Vegas Hoopla Tournament.