TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Illinois Institute of Technology broke open a tie game with 10 straight points in the second half and relied on solid free throw shooting down the stretch to top Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology 70-59 in men's basketball action on Tuesday night at Hulbert Arena.
Anthony Mosley Jr. led Illinois Tech with 24 points and hit 7-9 free throws, and Malik Howze added 23 points on 8-10 from the foul line. The Scarlet Hawks shot 55% from the field in the second half to separate the tightly contested matchup.
Rose-Hulman placed three players in double figures with a balanced scoring attack. Charlie Aimone led the team with 14 points, Craig McGee added 13 points, and Nick McGrail reached double figures with 10 points.
Other key contributors for the Engineers included John Czarnecki with seven points and four rebounds; and Ryuji Aoki with five points.
Rose-Hulman took a 48-46 lead with 11:07 left on two free throws by Kyle Steckel. Illinois Tech relied on its defense with 10 unanswered points over the next six minutes to built a 56-48 lead.
The Fightin' Engineers closed within 64-59 after a free throw by McGee and a three-pointer from McGrail with 1:04 remaining. Illinois Tech was able to hit six free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
Illinois Tech improved to 3-0 after finishing 22-6 last season. Rose-Hulman dropped to 0-3 on the year and travels to Millikin University in non-conference action on Monday Nov. 27.
