DECATUR, Ill. – Five players reached double figures in scoring but it wasn't enough as the Elmhurst men's basketball team suffered an 88-81 loss to Westminster College (Mo.) in the final game of the CCIW/SLIAC Challenge at Millikin University.
 
Elmhurst (0-3) dug themselves a nine-point hole with just six minutes remaining in the opening half, but the Bluejays battled back to pull even at the half. Elmhurst used a 14-5 run over the final six minutes of the half to even the score at 42-all heading to the half.
 
The Bluejays scored the first bucket of the second half on a layup from Jalen Loving, but a three-pointer from Romo Tabb put Westminster back in front with 18:46 left to play. Westminster (2-0) would not trail for the duration of the game.
 
Leading by just four point with 16 minutes remaining, Westminster used an 18-9 run over the next eight minutes to open up a 13-point cushion. Elmhurst slowly whittled the lead down to just five points with a minute remaining, but Westminster hit four free throws in the final minute to seal the seven-point victory.
 
Despite the loss, Elmhurst shot 50.0 percent from the floor, hitting 32-of-64 attempts. The Bluejays knocked down 8-of-23 attempts from beyond the arc (34.8 percent) while continuing to struggle from the free throw line (9-of-16). The Bluejays outscored Westminster 36-24 in the paint and had a 36-31 edge in rebounding, but Westminster took advantage of 20 Elmhurst turnovers to score 33 points.
 
Chris Parrilli led the Bluejays in the loss with 16 points, hitting 5-of-10 from the floor, including 4-of-6 from downtown. Derek Dotlich came off the bench to score 15 while Loving added 12 for Elmhurst. Caleb Mowry finished with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds while Ryan Patton finished with 10 points. Tucker Harlan added five assists and three points while Michael Plunk scored six.
 
Westminsters shot 52.8 percent (28-of-53) from the floor, including 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from downtown. Tabb paced the squad in the win, pouring in a game-high 23 points while shooting 7-of-14 from the floor. Jimmy Villalobos added 16 points while Sean O'Brien scored 14.
 
Elmhurst hosts Concordia University-Chicago on Tuesday, November 22.