Box Score WHEATON, Ill. - The Elmhurst College men's basketball team faded in the second half as Wheaton College pulled away for a 76-65 victory.

Elmhurst (10-11, 4-6 CCIW) hung with Wheaton (17-4, 8-2 CCIW) for the opening half, trailing by only five (43-38) at the half.

The Bluejays started strong in the second half, knotting the score at 45-45. After four straight points from Wheaton, a Brandon Grubl lay-up cut the Thunder's advantage down to just two points. Wheaton responded with eight straight points to built a nine-point cushion. The Thunder went on to open up a 12-point advantage before closing the game out with an 11-point victory.

Elmhurst finished the game shooting 46.0 percent (23-of-50) from the field, including 30.0 percent (4-of-13) from downtown.

Nick Sanford paced the Bluejays with 16 points and seven rebounds in the loss. Making his first collegiate start, Grubl also scored 16 for the Bluejays. Grubl added four assists and three steals in the loss. James Robertson came off the bench to finish with 12 points, four assists, and three steals while Jerome Robinson scored nine.

Wheaton finished the contest shooting 49.1 percent (26-of-53) from the field, including 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from three-point range.

Aaron Garriott dropped in a game-high 22 points while shooting 8-of-11 to lead the Thunder in the win. Tim McCrary finished with a double-double, totaling 10 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Jeremy Pflederer added 13 points for the Thunder in the win.

Elmhurst hosts Millikin University on Tuesday, February 7.