ELMHURST, Ill. - The Elmhurst University men's basketball team earned a hard-fought 78-68 victory over Millikin Wednesday (Feb. 5) evening inside R.A. Faganel Hall.

Elmhurst improves to 10-11 and 6-6 in CCIW action with the win, while Millikin fell to 11-10 overall and 5-7 in league play.

A tight game to begin, EU managed to pul away slightly and used a large scoring run in the middle of the second half to secure a key CCIW victory over the Big Blue, sweeping the season series and moving ahead of the visitors in the CCIW standings.

The Bluejays shot an efficient 11-for-21 from three-point range, with Dominic Trelenberg (18 points, 4-for-5 from three, two rebounds, three assists) and Tagen Pearson (16 points, 4-for-6 from three, three rebounds, three assists) leading the way for the Jays. Sebastian Blachut was back into double-digit scoring, contributing 15 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field.

Elmhurst's intensity on defense proved to be effective, forcing 16 Big Blue turnovers and turning those into 22 points, scoring 14 in the fast break.

Both teams traded baskets in the first ten minutes of the game, with each team holding a narrow lead at one point. After going down by two at the 7:39 mark, EU, Blachut got the Jays back in front with a pair of free throws and a breakaway layup. Blachut's four-point burst sparked a 15-2 run, with treys dropping from Trelenberg and Pearson, opening an 11-point advantage. Millikin would bring it closer towards the end of the half, squeezing the score down to a 36-29 advantage for the hosts at halftime.

Millikin would score six of the half's first nine points in the second to narrow the deficit to four with 16:32 left, but the Bluejays would find production from Blachut and Trelenberg to again widen the lead to 11.

The threes began to rain down midway through the second half, with Witcher knocking down one and Pearson drainig two-straight to extend the lead to 17, 65-48. From there, the Bluejays would continue to bury shots and play strong defense, only allowing the Big Blue back within 10 the rest of the game, and pulling away a 78-68 victory on their home court.

UP NEXT

The Bluejays have the weekend off, and will return to action with a key road contest at Augustana next Wednesday, Feb. 12, at 7:00pm in Rock Island.

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