ELMHURST, Ill. – The Elmhurst College men's basketball team ran its record to 9-1 on the season by cruising past Illinois College 93-68 at R.A. Faganel Hall.
 
Elmhurst, ranked 16th in the latest D3hoops.com poll, never trailed in the contest while building a 14-point lead at the half. Illinois College tied the score on three occasions, the last being at 7-7, but Elmhurst scored the next eight points to open up a 15-7 advantage. The Blueboys cut the deficit down to four points at 15-11, but Elmhurst rattled off an 8-0 run to push its lead up to 12 points with 12:46 remaining. Elmhurst extended its lead to 18 points with just over a minute remaining in the half and carried a 47-33 lead into the locker room at halftime. Jake Rhode and Derek Dotlich combined for 26 points in the opening half. Rhode totaled 15 while Dotlich scored 11. Both players knocked down three three-pointers in the opening half.
 
Illinois College (3-6) started quickly in the second half, opening with an 8-2 run to trim Elmhurst's lead down just eight points at 49-41 with 18 minutes remaining. The Bluejays called a timeout and responded by scoring the next 16 points and turning their eight-point lead into a 24-point cushion at 65-41with 13:47 left to play. Illinois College came no closer than 19 points for the duration of the contest. Elmhurst led by as many as 29 points before putting the game away with a 25-point victory.
 
The Bluejays finished the contest shooting 45.5 percent (30-of-66) from the floor, including 40.6 percent (13-of-32) from beyond the arc. Elmhurst hit 20-of-27 attempts from the free throw line.  Elmhurst outrebounded the Blueboys 54-37 in the contest.
 
Rhode led the Bluejays and all scorers with a game-high 25 points, shooting 7-of-10 from the floor, including 5-of-7 from downtown. He added five rebounds and three assists in the win. Dotlich finished with 17 points on a 6-of-15 shooting night. He connected on 5-of-9 attempts from three-point distance. Ebrahim Jobe came off the bench to score 10 points and collecte eight rebounds. Lavon Thomas finished with nine points and nine rebounds while Jay Militello totaled eight points, six boars and three assists. Wesley Hooker added eight points and six rebounds for Elmhurst.
 
Illinois College shot just 33.3 percent (25-of-75) from the floor, including 25.8 percent (8-of-31) from long distance. Jake Mazrimas led the way in the loss with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jaxson Dian added 15 points while Caleb Frederking totaled 13.
 
Elmhurst returns to action on Monday, December 30, by hosting Principia College at 7:00 p.m.