DECATUR, Ill.- The Elmhurst University men's basketball team downed Millikin University 70-59 Wednesday evening to earn their second CCIW victory of the season.

Elmhurst (10-4, 2-3 CCIW) used a bounce-back performance from Wesley Hooker (20 points) and a near double-double from Jonathan Zapinski (13 points, nine rebounds) to start the new year and CCIW schedule off on the right note. Neshat Dalipi broke out a career night for the Bluejays, tallying 10 points and three rebounds while blocking a pair of Big Blue shots, while Matt Woloch matched Dalipi's point performance. 

Millikin (8-6, 1-4 CCIW) was led by Drake Stevenson's 10 point, 14 rebound double-double, while Noah Livingston led the Big Blue with 15 points. 

The Big Blue out-rebounded the Bluejays on the offensive boards by an 18-7 margin and scored 15 second chance points, but the Bluejay bench stepped up in the conference win by tallying 24 points. 

Millikin started with a quick six-point burst, but Elmhurst tightened the deficit to two after a Dalipi trey with 15 to go in the first half. A Zapinski layup evened the score at 18, and an Ocean Johnson jumper on the fast break put the Bluejays ahead for the first time in the contest, leading 22-18 with less than 10 minutes to go in the first half.

A 10-2 Bluejay run extended the lead to nine, and a Tagen Pearson bucket from beyond the arc gave the visitors a seven-point lead heading into the break. 

The Bluejays set the tone for the second half early, extending their lead to 12 on a Woloch fastbreak layup before a Zapinski trey stretched the lead to 17, Elmhurst's largest of the game.

A pair of free throws from JT Welch of Millikin brought the home team's deficit to nine with just 3:35 left in the game, and a four-point burst from Livingston brought the game within five for the Big Blue with :46 seconds left. With their backs against the wall needing to foul, the Bluejays sank four shots from the charity line and used a block from Hornbuckle led to a Hooker fastbreak layup to seal the Bluejays' 11-point road victory.

UP NEXT

The Bluejays will stay on the road this weekend, traveling to Chicago for a matchup against the conference-leading Vikings of North Park University. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. CT, and will follow the Elmhurst women's basketball game against the Vikings.

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