CHICAGO, Ill. – The Eagles continued their December slate of games with a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) battle Saturday. They traveled south to face the Illinois Tech Scarlet Hawks. The streaky Eagles (1-8,1-3 NACC) erased several double digit deficits, but was unable to get past the Scarlet Hawks (5-7, 3-2) in a 76-71 loss.

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Illinois Tech dominated the first 10 minutes of play, racing out to a 29-7 lead as Edgewood College seemed to lack answers for their starting five.

- The Eagles turned the tables in the second quarter of play, deleting the Scarlet Hawks' advantage with a 24-3 rally to close within one 32-31 as the two squads hit the locker rooms.
 
- Edgewood College's bench played a large role as they clawed back into the game, outscoring Illinois Tech's bench 20-2 in the first half.

- The Scarlet Hawks flipped the script on the Eagles to start the second half, Eagles fouls and a dunk fueling a 13-1 rally and leading 45-33 with 16:31 left to play. The Illinois Tech momentum would carry them to a 65-45 lead with 8:41 left to play.

- Edgewood College would have one last hurrah, a 19-4 run sparked by a pair of Trey Traeder three-pointers taking them to the 1:19 mark down just 69-64. The Eagles ran out of time, however, as the Scarlet Hawks sank their free throws to keep them at arm's length to close out their victory.

- Four from Edgewood College finished with double digit points, Danny Mulcare and Cade Ellingson had 18 and 11 points off the bench respectively, while Jake Schroeckenthaler had 16 and Traeder tacked on 16. Traeder also had three blocks, while Schroeckenthaler led the team with seven rebounds. Drew Houtakker had a trio of steals.

- Otis Reale and Garrison Carter finished with 25 and 20 points respectively. Milos Dugalic contributed in all aspects of the game with a 15-point, 16-rebound double-double that also featured four steals.

- The Eagles shot 47.1 (24-of-51) from the floor, compared to Illinois Tech's 45.5 (25-of-55) from the floor.  Edgewood College's bench outscored the Scarlet Hawks' 32-4, but Illinois Tech won the points off turnovers battle 20-9.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Mulcare's 18 points and Traeder's three blocks were both career highs.

- The Eagles still lead the series since 1992-93 5-4 over Illinois Tech.

- The loss was Edgewood College's fifth of the season in single digits.

UP NEXT
The Eagles return home for the last time in 2022 for another NACC matchup at the Edgedome. They play host to Wisconsin Lutheran Tuesday night with first tip scheduled for 6:00 p.m. The Eagles won 80-72 earlier this month at the Warriors and lead the series since 42-29 over Wisconsin Lutheran.