RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon men's basketball program opened Midwest Conference play against Illinois College for the third consecutive season on Saturday afternoon, falling to the nationally recognized Blueboys 72-62 inside Weiske Gymnasium.
 
Illinois College (7-0, 2-0 MWC) shot 64.0% from the field (16-25) in the second half while holding Ripon (1-7, 0-1 MWC) to just 40.5% from the floor (15-37) in the same timeframe to remain undefeated.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Senior guard Cade Tackmier scored a game-high 17 points, including four three-pointers. He added 3 rebounds and 3 steals.
• Junior guard Luke Meinholz tallied 12 points, 7 rebounds, 6 steals, 2 assists and a block.
• Senior guard Connor Spielvogel added 11 points and 3 rebounds off the bench. He made at least two three-pointers for the fourth consecutive game (and sixth time this season).
• Senior guard Dominic Galati chipped in 8 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds off the bench.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
There was a lid on the basket to begin the game, as neither team scored for the first 3:50 of the game until Tackmier drilled a three. An early 7-0 run put Ripon up 10-2 for its biggest lead of the game until IC responded with eight consecutive points to tie it up. After Ripon led 20-16, Illinois College closed the half on a 10-3 run to hold a slim three-point lead at the break.
 
The Blueboys roared out of halftime to take control in the final frame. After Tackmier hit another triple to give Ripon a 28-26 advantage, a critical 14-0 Illinois College run put the Blueboys up double digits for the foreseeable future. Spielvogel made a layup to bring Ripon within nine at 47-38 with 11:07 left, but IC regained control and led by 17 on multiple occasions in the second half. Ripon made a late charge with a barrage of three-pointers to trail 69-62 with 29 seconds left, but IC salted the game away at the foul line to preserve the win.
 
KEY STATS

• Illinois College had a 46.3% to 32.9% advantage in field goal shooting.
• IC went 16 of 23 from the free-throw line (69.6%), while Ripon only attempted eight free tries and went 6 of 8 (75.0%).
• Ripon had three times as many points from its bench as IC (24-8).
• Ripon forced 18 turnovers – its second-highest total of the season – and highest in a non-overtime game.
• Four Blueboys scored in double figures, led by Jake Mazrimas and his 16-point, 8-rebound performance.

UP NEXT
Ripon visits Beloit on Wednesday (December 6) at 5:30 p.m.
 
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