By Jami Sponaugle

Chicago, Ill. - Garrison Carter and Caden Gigstad put up career high numbers as Scarlet Hawks in the Illinois Tech men's basketball heartbreaking overtime loss to the Marian University Sabres. Entering the game, the Hawks sat in 3rd place in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) while the Sabres were in 1st. Although the Hawks (9-9, 7-3) held a 10-point lead at halftime, the Sabres slowly began to chip away at it during the 2nd half. The end of regulation would end in a 78-78 tie as the two sides battled until the buzzer. With a last second shot attempt, the Hawks were unable to record the game-winning basket as they fell to the Sabres 90-89. 

The Hawks now sit in 4th place in the NACC standings. 

First Half (Illinois Tech 44 - Marian 34)

• After a slow start to the contest, the Hawks got on the board first with a free throw from Otis Reale. At 15:39 on the clock, Carter made a 3-pointer to tie the game at 4-4. Both sides then went back-and-forth for much of the first half. Neither side was able to get far ahead as the other always stayed within reach. Multiple ties would happen throughout the half before the Hawks were able to pull away. With 1:36 remaining, the Hawks went on a 7-0 run to close out the half. Heading into the locker rooms, the Hawks held a 10-point, 44-34 lead over the Sabres. 

Second Half (Illinois Tech 34 - Marian 44)

• In the second half of play, the Hawks were able to build up to a 12-point lead, their largest of the game, when Desmond Price made a layup to put the Hawks up 53-41. From there, the Sabres began their comeback, going on a 15-6 run between 15:48 and 12:06 to cut the Hawks lead to 3. The Hawks fought to stay ahead as the Sabres were within reach. With 2:01 remaining, the Sabres tied the game at 75-75. One minute later, the Sabres took the lead with a 3-pointer. Carter then made a 3-pointer for the Hawks with 44 seconds left to tie the game up at 78-78. Both sides would have an opportunity to secure the victory, but came up short as the final buzzer went off, sending the game into overtime.

Overtime (Illinois Tech 11 - Marian 12)

• The Sabres began overtime taking the lead with a layup and a free throw. Carter put the Hawks within one with a layup as the Sabres led 81-80. Two free throws from both sides made the score 83-82 in favor of the Sabres with 3:19 remaining. A Carter dunk at 2:34 gave the Hawks their first lead of overtime. After back-to-back baskets from the Sabres, Gigstad nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 87-87 with 1:29 remaining. A Sabres free throw put the visitors back ahead before Reale tied the game, and then put the Hawks ahead with two free throws. With 43 seconds left, the Sabres made a jump shot to take a 90-89 lead. The Hawks were able to get down the court before calling a timeout. After multiple timeouts, 3 seconds remained on the clock. A 3-point attempt came just short for the Hawks as they fell to the Sabres 90-89. 

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Carter led the Hawks with a career high 29 points and picked up a double-double with 12 rebounds. Carter also tallied 1 steal.

• Gigstad recorded a career high with 28 points in the contest. Gigstad added 1 rebound, 4 assists, and 2 steals. 

• Reale rounded out the Hawks double-digit scorers with 13 points. Reale led the team with 9 assists and he ended with 1 steal. 

Sabres Standouts

• David Britton led the way for the Sabres with 32 points and 6 assists. Britton added 3 rebounds as well.

• Tyler Gouin ended with 23 points. Gouin led with 9 rebounds and picked up 4 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. 

• Carson Talbert finished with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block.

• Josh Nicklaus tallied 10 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. 

Inside the Box Score

• The Hawks went 32-of-55 (58.2%) from the field, 9-of-14 (64.3%) from three, and 16-of-23 (69.6%) from the free throw line. The Sabres went 22-of-62 (53.2%), 9-of-15 (60.0%), and 15-of-26 (57.7%) respectively.

• The Hawks edged the Sabres 29-28 in rebounds. 

• 44 of the Sabres points came in the paint while the Hawks had 28. 

Up Next

The Hawks will hit the road for their next two games. They return to action on Tuesday when they head to Madison, Wis. to take on the Edgewood College Eagles in NACC action.