Kalamazoo, Mich. - Illinois Tech men's basketball was looking forward to the holiday break, but they had one more task at hand: a Friday night non-conference road game at Kalamazoo College to close out first half of the season. The Scarlet Hawks held the lead at halftime, but the Hornets built up a ten-point lead in the second half and held off a rally by the Scarlet Hawks for a 81-77 victory. The Scarlet Hawks fell to 3-8. Kalamazoo improved to 6-2.

To get the victory, the Hornets had to contend with a career-high tying performance from the Scarlet Hawks' DeAndre Vortes, who scored 31 points in the game, shooting 10-19 from the field, including hitting six three-pointers. Vortes was one of three Scarlet Hawks in double-figures in scoring, with Dario Biaggi and Nicolas Ortiz each putting up ten-point efforts.

How It Happened

• First Half - Illinois Tech 38 - Kalamazoo 33: Kalamazoo would hold a ten-point lead with 10:13 remaining in the opening half. With the Hornet still leading 27-19 with 5:58 remaining, the Scarlet Hawks would go on their best run of the game, using a 16-0 burst to take an eight-point lead with 2:36 remaining. Kalamazoo would inch back, using a 6-3 run to pull within five points at halftime. Vortes led the Hawks with 11 points in the first half.
• Second Half - Kalamazoo 48 - Illinois Tech 39: A three-pointer by Vortes at the 19:01 mark of the second half re-established an eight-point lead for the Scarlet Hawks. Kalamazoo would proceed to go on their best run of the game, a 14-0 swing that put the Hornets up 50-44 with 14:51 to go in the second half. The Hornets would extend their lead to ten points with 4:04 remaining before the Hawks mounted a comeback. A pair of free-throws by Vortes with 46 seconds remaining capped of a 10-3 run by the Scarlet Hawks, cutting their deficit to three points. Kalamazoo would go back up by six points with eight seconds remaining, but Vortes would connect on a three-pointer four seconds later to pull Illinois Tech within three points at 80-77. The Scarlet Hawks could not steal the ensuing Kalamazoo inbound pass and had to foul the Hornets Lukas Broadsword, who converted one of two free throws for the final margin of victory.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• DeAndre Vortes tying a career-high with 31 points, connecting on six three-pointers, while adding 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 steals
• Nicolas Ortiz with 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist
• Dario Biaggi with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 2 steals
• Myles Townsend with 7 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal

Inside The Box Score

• Carter Bandemer led the Hornets in scoring with 18 points
• Kalamazoo's Lukas Broadsword tallied a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds
• The Hornets shot 53% from the field; the Scarlet Hawks shot 45%
• Illinois Tech held the advantage in points off turnovers, points in the paint and fast break points: Kalamazoo had the advantage in second-chance points and bench points

Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks head to the holiday break. They'll next take the court on Saturday, January 4th, when they travel to Angola, Indiana for a non-conference tilt with Trine University at 1:00pm CT/2:00pm ET.