JACKSONVILLE, Ill. -- Ripon College men's basketball dropped a hard-fought Midwest Conference road contest on Saturday afternoon, falling 66-63 to Illinois College at Sherman Gymnasium.
The Red Hawks battled back from a slow start, trailing 38-25 at halftime, before putting together a strong second half that nearly erased the deficit. Ripon outscored Illinois College 38-28 after the break, shooting 46.4 percent from the field in the second half and converting 9-of-10 free throws to keep the game within reach until the final seconds.
Sophomore
Sam Leoni (Hartland, Wis., Arrowhead HS) led Ripon offensively with a game-high 17 points, going 11-for-13 from the free-throw line while also adding three rebounds and a block in 33 minutes of action. Sophomore
Anton Kilde (Portage, Wis., Portage HS) provided a major spark off the bench, finishing with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including three three-pointers, while pulling down four rebounds. Senior
CJ Brown (Minneapolis, Minn., Minneapolis North Area HS) also reached double figures, scoring 13 points on an efficient 6-of-10 shooting night and dishing out three assists.
Sophomore
Michael Asman (Kimberly, Wis., Kimberly HS) anchored the Red Hawks inside, recording 10 rebounds to go along with eight points, while Junior
Jack Field (Wisconsin Dells, Wis., Marian University) contributed seven points, seven rebounds, and a block off the bench. Ripon's bench totaled 23 points, providing key production throughout the contest.
Ripon steadily chipped away in the final minutes, cutting the margin to four with under 20 seconds remaining and continuing to apply pressure at the free-throw line. Despite the late surge, the Red Hawks were unable to complete the comeback, ultimately coming up just short in the three-point loss.
Ripon finished the game shooting 39.6 percent from the field and held a 31-29 rebounding edge, with 32 points scored in the paint.
The Red Hawks will return home for their next contest on Tuesday, Jan 13, when they host Lawrence University at 5:30pm in a Midwest Conference matchup.
