Sangamon Sun

GALESBURG, Ill. – Buzz Ritzel led the Illinois College men's basketball team to a significant victory over Knox with a career-high 35 points. The game, held at Memorial Gymnasium on Tuesday, ended with an 82-67 win for IC in the Midwest Conference.

Following this win, Illinois College's record improved to 11-5 overall and 4-3 in conference play. In contrast, Knox's record fell to 3-11 and 0-5.

The Prairie Fire initially held an eight-point lead at 19-11 after ten minutes of play. However, the Blueboys responded with a decisive 10-0 run over two minutes to regain control. The first half saw five lead changes and ended tied at 45.

In the second half, IC dominated. Josh Harris started the scoring with a three-pointer, setting the pace for IC to maintain their lead throughout. A three-pointer by Ritzel increased their advantage to ten points with just over five minutes remaining. Ultimately, IC secured their largest lead of the night at fifteen points by the final buzzer.

Ty Lenhardt supported Ritzel's efforts with 18 points and six rebounds. Seth Doss added ten points and six rebounds while Harris also contributed ten points. Jaylen Swinney achieved a game-high nine rebounds for Illinois College.

Ritzel's performance marked his second time surpassing thirty points in three games, having scored 31 against Beloit last week. The Blueboys have won 43 of their last 53 games and triumphed in 32 of their previous 39 Midwest Conference contests.

Illinois College will next face Lake Forest on Saturday at Sherman Gymnasium in another Midwest Conference match-up scheduled for a tip-off at 3:00 p.m.