LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology men's basketball opened Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference action with a win against Transylvania University 72-69.  Rose-Hulman improved to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the HCAC, while Transylvania fell to 3-2 and 0-2 in HCAC play.

Rose-Hulman led at the halftime buzzer 36-27, after Max Chaplin and Trey Wurtz combined for 19 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the floor.  Dillon Duff added seven points and Terry Hicks already had eight rebounds at the break.

The Pioneers cut the Rose-Hulman deficit to five points early in the second half, but Rose-Hulman engineered an 11-4 run to an eventual 14-point lead with just over five minutes in the game.

Transylvania, for the second time, cut the Rose-Hulman lead using an 11-2 run of their own.  Inside the one-minute mark in the game, Transylvania's Zach Larimore grabbed a defensive rebound and finished the possession with a layup, bringing the score to 68-66 in Rose-Hulman's favor.

Hicks scored three points with 15 seconds remaining, which Larimore followed with two of his own.  With only 3.6 seconds remaining, the Pioneers game-tying three point attempt was blocked by Duff and the ball went out of bounds.  The Pioneers last-second attempt was off the mark, securing the Rose-Hulman victory. 

Five Fightin' Engineers finished in double-digit scoring, led by Chaplin with a career-high 19 points in 31 minutes off the bench.  Hicks recorded his third double-double of the season with 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. 

Vuk Djuric added 11 points and nine rebounds on 5-for-6 shooting from the floor.  Duff and Wurtz each added 10 points.

Larimore recorded a game-high 24 points on 9-for-17 shooting, and added 10 rebounds to his effort.

Rose-Hulman shot 46.3% in the game, including 8-for-19 from the behind the arc.  The Pioneers tallied a 38.7% shooting clip for the game.

The Fightin' Engineers return home to Hulbert Arena on Wednesday, December 8 to battle Earlham College in the John Mutchner Cup Game.