#1 Wash U 93 IWU 86

Overall, I was extremely impressed with IWU's effort and performance today in St. Louis. The Titans gave Wash U a good battle.

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The big play of the game happened with 2:44 to play. IWU trailed by just 3, 83-80, and Wash U had the ball with the shot clock winding down. The Bears almost threw the ball out of bounds, but it was saved in by Cameron Smith to Tyler Nading with 2 seconds on the shot clock. Nading was about 4 feet behind the 3-point line on the right wing, took a quick look around and realized his only option was to throw up a bomb...and he made it. That shot put Wash U up 6. Had he missed, the Titans - with the momentum at that point - get the ball in good shape.

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IWU could not stop the Bears for any consistent stretch. Wash U shot 57% from the field. They are just such a talented and well-coached team though - it is just incredibly hard to stop their offense. Wash U will have some games this year where they come out flat or where they don't shoot it well (or both) and will lose, but when they come to play and are making shots, like today, they are very hard to beat. Wash U was also helped by a huge game from freshman Dylan Richter, who is going to be a Division III All-American someday.

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A lot of positives for the young IWU team today though. The Titans shot 61% from the field against a very good defensive team, in a pretty hostile environment. Point-guard Travis Rosenkranz was outstanding - 20 pts, 6 reb, 4 assists, and just 1 turnover. Backcourt mate Sean Johnson had 17 points, 6-7 sophomore Doug Sexauer finished with 13, and 6-6 Edmond O'Callaghan had 10 & 5 off the bench. Much like the Olivet Nazarene game though, the Titans just did not shoot the 3 well - 5-19 today.

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I think anyone at the game today would agree that this was a game between two pretty evenly matched teams in terms of talent, with one just being older, more experienced, and more ready to win a game like this. The Titans gained tremendous experience today, just as they did last year in a tough loss @ Wash U.

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IWU is certainly not the favorite to win the CCIW this year, but the Titans are going make it tough on everyone they play in January and February. I'll go as far as to say the Titans can win the CCIW this year if (big if) they can learn to defend and rebound better. They will only go as far as those two things.