Sangamon Sun

The Illinois College men's basketball team faced its first defeat of the season against Otterbein in the Smokey Ballenger Classic championship game. The match, held at the Rike Center, ended with a score of 74-71 in favor of the Cardinals.

This loss brings the Blueboys' record to 12-1, while Otterbein improved to 8-3. Buzz Ritzel and Jake Mazrimas led Illinois College with 16 points each. Mazrimas also contributed eight rebounds. Matt Thompson added 10 points off the bench, and Austin Robinson collected eight rebounds for Illinois College, which played without starting center Nestor Daboin.

Mazrimas moved into fifth place on Illinois College's all-time scoring list during the game and was named to the All-Tournament Team alongside Ritzel.

The closely contested game saw both teams exchanging leads eight times and tying five times. Illinois College had a six-point lead at 58-52 with just over eight minutes remaining after Jahkeis Tippett scored. However, Otterbein responded with an 8-0 run, taking a two-point lead.

Illinois College briefly regained a one-point lead following a three-pointer by Thompson, but Troy Scowden's jumper for Otterbein soon shifted momentum back to the Cardinals. The Blueboys could not reclaim their lead for the remainder of the game.

This match concluded a challenging series of road games for Illinois College. They are set to return home to face Beloit on Wednesday at Sherman Gymnasium, with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 p.m.