DUBUQUE, Iowa - The Rockford University men's basketball team dropped a heartbreaker on Tuesday evening 88-85 at Loras College. The game went back and forth for much of the evening with each team gaining control at different points during the game. Ultimately though the difference in the game was at the free throw line. Rockford was whistled for 12 more fouls, had four players foul out and thus shot 29 fewer free throws than the Duhawks. Despite seemingly everything going against them, the Regents still had a pair of three-point attempts at the end of the game but both were off the mark as Rockford fell to 0-2.
The first half got off to a great start as Rockford opened the game on a 9-0 run. Sophomore Zach Wallace (Rockford, Ill.) and Jerry Pratt (Minneapolis, Minn.) were once again the catalyst for the Rockford offense scoring 8 of the 9 points. That momentum would be short lived as Loras promptly went on a 9-0 run of its own over the next two and a half minutes to tie the game. The two schools then traded baskets for the remainder of the first half with the largest lead for either team coming at the 3:16 mark when Pratt made a free throw giving Rockford a 29-25 advantage. However, Loras closed the half strong scoring 8 of the final 10 points taking a 33-31 lead into the intermission.
The second half opened with a similar flow as the Regents and Duhawks traded baskets before Loras seemed to take control of the game about midway through the half. With 14 minutes and 36 seconds remaining and the game tied at 41-41, Loras went caught fire going on a 23-7 run over the next 6 minutes to take their largest lead of the evening. Rockford slowly chipped away at the lead until Pratt's 3-point basket with 34 seconds left cut the deficit to just 2 points. The Regents then pulled back to within a single point following a layup by Ross Arteaga (Mendota, Ill.) with 12 seconds remaining. After Loras made 1-of-2 free throws, Rockford got the ball back down 2 with a chance to tie or take the lead but Pratt's three-pointer was off the mark. The Regents would get the ball back one more time, with just seconds remaining and down three this time, but Loras would block the game-tying three-pointer to hold on for the 88-85 win.
Zach Wallace had a career day for Rockford as he led the Regents in both scoring and rebounding. Wallace poured in a career-high 20 points while grabbing a season-high 10 rebounds for his first collegiate double-double.
The Regents had a three others hit double-digits on Tuesday. Guard Ross Arteaga scored a game-high 21 points while adding 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Forward Jerry Pratt again came off the bench to score 17 points with 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and a steal. Junior shooting guard John O'Bryan (Richmond, Ky.) added 14 points and 4 rebounds.
The men's basketball team returns to the court on Friday, November 21 at 7:30 p.m. against Illinois College. The game will be played in Jacksonville, Ill. as a part of the 2-day Bill Merris Tournament.
