CHICAGO, Ill. – The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) men's basketball team took a short trip to Chicago to face Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) opponent, Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). The game was tight in the first half, but an early second half surge for the Cougars put them on top 82-76. The Cougars are now 10-14 (8-9 NACC).
 
Inside the Box Score

• Aaron Brown (Joliet, Ill.) picked up a career-high 19 points, while also picking up two blocks, a steal, and an assist.
• Darrian Williams (Garland, Texas) followed with 16 points and four assists.
• Jacob Collicott (Lafayette, Ind.) once again registered double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
• Joel Watts (Homewood, Ill.) recorded a team high five assists along with 13 points.

 
How it Happened
First Half
The Scarlet Hawks got out to an early 4-0 lead, but Collicott put up back-to-back layups to even the score. IIT would bank two free throws before the CUC went on an 8-0 run, which saw four Cougars get in on the action: Collicott, Brown, Williams, and Kenton Pryor (Hazel Crest, Ill.). Leading 12-6, the Cougars kept control for almost eight minutes, before the Scarlet Hawks were able to tie the game back up at 16-16. Williams answered with one from deep that kicked off another 8-0 run for the Concordia, but IIT wouldn't give up. The Scarlet Hawks battled back to take a one-point lead, 27-26, with 1:20 on the clock. Three more points from Brown in the final minute kept the teams tied, 29-29, going into the half.

Second Half
CUC came back out onto the court with their eye on the victory, starting off with a three-pointer. The Scarlet Hawks kept the game level at 34, just before the Cougars went off on an important 15-2 run. Brown started the run with a layup while Collicott and Watts each totaled five points in the run. Sean Beckman (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) rounded out the run with a bucket from deep to lead 49-36 with 15:28 remaining. The Scarlet Hawks would go on their own run, but a three from Watts and free throws from Pryor and Brown kept the Cougars ahead, 55-49. IIT was able to put themselves back within three, 55-52, but back-to-back three-pointers from Williams and Honore Yangoua (Williamstown, Ky.) and layup from Ryker Johnson (Fond du Lac, Wis.)  helped reestablish a bigger gap in favor of CUC, 63-52. Every time the Scarlet Hawks would look to go on a run, the Cougars were there to stop them, never letting IIT get closer than six points. In the final minutes of the game, Andreas Louloudis (Thessaloniki, Greece), Brown, Watts, Yangoua, Williams, and Beckman all added to their point totals for the day and led the Cougars to an 82-76 victory.

Up Next
The Cougars play their final regular season game at home against Milwaukee School of Engineering on Saturday, February 22. Tipoff is at 4:00 pm. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.