MADISON, Wis. - The Regents dropped their sixth straight road game on Saturday 86-73 to the Edgewood College Eagles. Rockford was unable to curtail the hot shooting Eagles as they connected on 56.7% shooting from the floor including 45.5% from the three-point line. Meanwhile the Regents shot just 44.1% from the field and 35.7% from beyond the arc.
Rockford opened the game strong but ultimately it was Edgewood who gained control midway through the half. Senior forward David Dixon (Bellwood, Ill./St. Joseph) began the game by knocking down the first shot of the day to give his team the lead. The Regents would maintain that lead with a balanced attack over the first four minutes as three different players found the bottom of the net to give Rockford a 10-7 advantage. However, the Eagles then caught fire from the floor going on a 13-0 run to give them a 10-point lead. Edgewood extended its lead to as many as 13 points before ultimately entering halftime up 41-31.
In the second half the Regents were able to cut the lead down to single-digits on several occasions but the Eagles had an answer each time. The two schools traded baskets in the beginning moments of the half before Edgewood used an 8-0 run to extend its advantage to 60-42 with 12:08 remaining. Despite the large deficit, the Regents had one final push left in them. Over the next six minutes Rockford slowly chipped away at the deficit and eventually got it down to just 8 points. The team once again relied on a balanced scoring attack that saw six different players record at least two points with a Phil Andrade (South Chicago Heights, Ill./Bloom Trail) jumper capping the run to make it a 67-59 game with 6:06 remaining. However Rockford would get no closer as Edgewood promptly pushed its lead back to double-digits and won by a final score of 86-73.
The Regents again got the majority of their scoring from a pair of seniors. Scott Suchy (Genoa, Ill./Genoa-Kingston) was Rockford's leading scorer with 21 points on 9-of-19 shooting. Suchy also recorded 3 rebounds and 3 assists. David Dixon poured in 19 points, 9 rebounds and 1 assist.
Freshman Zach Wallace (Rockford, Ill./Belvidere) added 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks while Phil Andrade and John O'Bryan (Richmond, Ky./Madison Central) each scored 8 points. Andrade also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.
The men's basketball team returns to the court on Saturday, February 15th at home against the Wisconsin Lutheran College Warriors. The two schools are currently in a battle for the final NACC playoff spot with the Warriors holding 0.5 game lead over the Regents. Tip-off for Saturday's matchup is set for 2:00 p.m. in the Seaver Center
