Chicago, Ill. - With their post-season chances fading, the Illinois Tech men's basketball team desperately needed a win to live to fight for another day. That's exactly what the Scarlet Hawks accomplished Saturday afternoon, as they defeated third-place Benedictine University 69-66 at the Keating Sports Center. The Scarlet Hawks improved to 4-11 in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play, and to 5-17 overall. It was also the Hawks first home win of the season. The Eagles, who saw their seven-game winning streak snapped, dropped to 10-4 in conference play, and to 13-8 overall.

The Scarlet Hawks Andrew Veon posted a career-high in points with 26 and steals with 5, while also pulling down 9 rebounds to go along with 2 assists and 1 block. He shot 79% from the field on 11-14 shooting. Tomas Teklegergis backed up Veon's effort with 14 points of his own, including hitting 9 of 11 free throws while drawing 7 Benedictine fouls.

First Half Illinois Tech 38 - Benedictine 34)
Veon started things early, scoring on a pair of layups in the game's first two minutes to tie the score at 4-4. The Hawks would proceed to go on an 8-0 run to take a 12-4 lead at the 15:31 mark. The Scarlet Hawks would extend their lead to 12, leading 23-11 with 11:05 remaining in the half. The Eagles would battle back however, with Drew Stokes converting a second-chance basket at 2:20 to give Benedictine a 32-31 lead. The Hawks would close out the half with a 7-2 run to regain the lead at the half. Veon led the Hawks with 17 points in the opening frame.

Second Half (Benedictine 32 - Illinois Tech 31)
The Eagles chipped away at their deficit to start the second half, pulling within one point at 45-44 with 15:19 remaining. But a Teklegergis jumper at 11:38 capped off an 11-2 run by the Scarlet Hawks, giving them a 56-46 lead. The Eagles would stick around though, and when Cullen Cosme converted a pair of technical free throws with 42 seconds remaining, Benedictine pulled within one point at 67-66. But Teklegergis converted a pair of free throws with 22 seconds remaining to extend the Hawks lead to 69-66. The Eagles had two more possessions to try and tie the score, but a turnover negated their first opportunity, and a last-second desperation half-court shot fell short at the buzzer. Veon added 9 more points in the second half to pace the Hawks.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Andrew Veon led all scorers with 26 points, a career-high, to go along with 9 rebounds, 5 steals(also a career-high), 2 assists and 1 block. Veon shot 79% from the field on 11 of 14 shooting.
• Tomas Teklegergis added 14 points in just under 17 minutes played, including 9 of 11 from the free throw line while drawing 7 Benedictine fouls. 
• Joshua Iguade had 10 rebounds, 4 points, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block in just over 20 minutes played.
• Owen Walsh chipped in 4 points off the bench with a rebound in 7 minutes of action.

Eagles Watch

• Trevor Montiel paced the Eagles with 17 points, while adding 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
• Drew Stokes had 14 points and 6 rebounds.
• Cullen Cosme with 6 points and 8 rebounds.

Inside The Box Score

• Illinois Tech shot 32% from three-point range(6-19), while Benedictine shot 18%(4-22).
• Both teams shot well from the free throw line, with Illinois Tech converting 15 of 19 for 79% and Benedictine 18-24 for 75%.
• Illinois Tech held a 29-16 advantage in points from the bench.
• The Scarlet Hawks held the lead for 37:44 minutes of the game.

Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks face another tough task on Wednesday, when they travel to Milwaukee to face second-place Wisconsin Lutheran at 7:00 PM in another NACC matchup.