CHICAGO, IL - The Benedictine University men's basketball team opened play in the NACC with a third consecutive win.

FINAL SCORE
Benedictine 55, Illinois Tech 51

THE DETAILS
• Benedictine led for nearly the entire game but had to hold on late
• Kyle Graebner opened the game with a three-pointer following a steal from Mike Boatright
• Holding a 17-15 advantage midway through the half, Benedictine scored the next eight points to open a double-digit lead at 25-15 on a layup from Walter Taylor with just over three minutes left in the first half
• Boatright went coast-to-coast for a layup to make the score 30-19 just before the half and Benedictine went into the break leading 30-21
• Eric Grygo kicked off the second half with a layup following a rebound as the lead again extended to 11 at 32-21
• Over the next seven minutes Illinois Tech battled within two points at 37-35
• Benedictine continued to lead by six points with five minutes left, but Illinois Tech netted the next seven points to lead for the first time at 51-50 with 1:46 remaining
• Boatright tied the game by splitting free throws with 1:07 left and Grygo put Benedictine ahead 53-51 with two free throws with 15 seconds left following a missed three-pointer
• Grygo grabbed a key rebound off a missed layup and connected on two more free throws with three seconds to go to account for the final score

STAT LEADERS
• Benedictine shot 40 percent in the game including just 26.7 percent from three-point range and 64.7 percent from the line
• Grygo scored 18 points to lead Benedictine, finishing 6-of-9 from the field
• Graebner was the only other player to reach double figures, notching 10
• The defense held Illinois Tech to just 36.4 percent

UP NEXT
Benedictine (4-1, 1-0 NACC) travels to #3 North Central on Tuesday night for a non-conference game.