Box Score

Beloit, Wis. – The Prairie Fire's bid to overcome a 10-point second half deficit came up short in a 75-69 Midwest Conference loss at Beloit College on Thursday.

Knox trimmed a 35-30 Beloit lead early in the second half to 35-33 on a 3-point basket by senior Eric Miller (Villa Park, IL, Willowbrook).  The Buccaneers followed with a 10-2 run that stretched their lead to 45-35 with 15:00 left in the game.

The Prairie Fire worked over the next seven minutes to cut Beloit's lead back to single digits for good.  Senior David Jones (Denver, CO, Colorado Academy/Air Force Academy) sank two free throws with 7:55 remaining to pull within nine at 58-49.

The Buccaneers (3-5, 2-3 MWC) scored on an offensive put-back by James Lazarcik, a DIII News Preseason Honorable Mention All-American, and still led by eight (66-58) with 4:50 to play.

Knox called a time out and then ran off six straight points. A jumper by Jones, a 3-pointer by junior Mitch Murphy (Bushnell, IL, Bushnell-Prairie City), and a free throw by first-year Marcellis Davis (Chicago, IL, Curie) made it one possession game as the Prairie Fire trailed 66-64 with 3:03 in regulation.

The Bucs answered with a basket by Lazarcik and three free throws to extend the lead to 71-64 with 49 seconds to go.

Knox couldn't draw any closer than six points the rest of the way.

The Prairie Fire (1-9, 0-5 MWC) trailed by as many as 12 points in the game.

A conventional 3-point play by Knox sophomore Charlie Harned (Webster Groves, MO, Clayton) tied the contest at 12-apiece at the 13:29 mark.  Beloit scored 15 of the next 18 points for a 27-15 lead with 7:12 remaining in the first half.

Knox battled back with an 11-4 surge that began when Miller knocked down a 3-pointer and was capped off by two free throws from Davis to make it a five point game at 31-26 with 2:16 ahead of the break.

Beloit held a 33-26 lead at halftime after shooting 40 percent, including 4-of-13 from behind the 3-point line.  The Prairie Fire tallied nine first half field goals, two of them 3-pointers, and closed the half at 33 percent shooting.

Knox outscored the Bucs 43-42 in the second half.  The Prairie Fire sank 20-of-23 free throws while Beloit was 10-of-15 from in the final 20:00 of play.

Knox finished the game shooting 37 percent and Beloit improved to 46 percent.

Murphy led the Prairie Fire in scoring with 20 points.  Jones had 14 points and first-year Deandre Weathersby (Chicago, IL, Kenwood Academy) added 10 points while corralling a team-high six rebounds.

Lazarcik scored a career-high 31 points for the Buccaneers, who won for the eighth consecutive time in the series.

Knox picks up play in the New Year with a Midwest Conference game at Carroll University on January 4 at 3:00 p.m. 

The Pioneers (4-4, 2-3 MWC) lost 76-69 at St. Norbert College on December 18, their last league contest before the holidays.

Follow Prairie Fire athletics on Twitter and Facebook