CHICAGO, Ill. – Illinois Tech Men's Basketball has released its 2018-19 schedule. The Scarlet Hawks will play 25 regular-season contests as full first-year NCAA Division III and Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) members.
The Scarlet Hawks, who are coming off of a 19-8 season and have won 41 contests over the last two years, begin 2018-19 with an exhibition at nearby NAIA opponent Roosevelt University on November 8 at 6:00 p.m. Just five days later, Tech's first regular season game will be on the road against Trine on November 12 at 7:00 p.m. This is a rematch against the Thunder, whom Tech defeated in the Keating Sports Center 65-56 a season ago.
Tech will then travel to DeKalb as Illinois Tech will take on NCAA Division I Northern Illinois University in an exhibition on Saturday, November 17. The Scarlet Hawks will face a Division I school for the first time since taking on Chicago State University in 2016-17, falling 97-89 on the road in another exhibition contest.
After traveling to NIU, Illinois Tech hits the road again for the Thanksgiving Classic on November 24 and 25 at Carroll University. The Scarlet Hawks take on Carthage College in a rematch of last season's 86-80 overtime victory on Wabash Ave. on November 24 before taking on host Carroll on November 25.
The NACC 20-game schedule begins on November 28, as the Scarlet Hawks travel to Benedictine University to take on the Eagles starting at 7:00 p.m. BenU finished second in the league last season, falling in the NACC Tournament Championship game. Then, the home schedule opens on December 1, as the Scarlet Hawks will host last season's NACC Tournament Champion Aurora University. The Spartans, whom the Hawks last faced and defeated on the road during the 2016-17 campaign, pulled off one of the largest upset victories in last year's NCAA Division III Tournament, defeating fourth-ranked Washington University St. Louis on the Bears' home court on a buzzer-beater.
December rolls along with four NACC contests: vs. Dominican University (December 5), at Milwaukee School of Engineering (December 8), vs. Lakeland University (December 15), at Concordia University Wisconsin (December 19). Illinois Tech will then a break from conference play and host Wheaton College on December 29.
Tech will then play 14 NACC games in a row before the regular season ends, with the contests split even between home and away. At home, the Scarlet Hawks will oppose Marian University (January 9), MSOE (January 15), Benedictine (January 23), Wisconsin Lutheran College (January 29), Edgewood College (February 6), Concordia-Wisconsin (February 12), and Rockford University (February 16). On the road, Tech will face Wisconsin Lutheran (January 3), Lakeland (January 5), Concordia University Chicago (January 12), Edgewood (January 19), Rockford (January 26), Dominican (February 2), and Aurora (February 9).
The NACC Tournament starts Wednesday, February 20, with the top six teams qualifying. Seeds three through six will play on the 20th, with the highest seed hosting each contest at 7:00 p.m. On February 23 and 24, the Semifinals and Finals will be played, hosted by the tournament's top seed.
Live audio, video, and stats will be available for every home contest at the Keating Sports Center. The live audio will be powered by Illinois Media School.