GALESBURG, IL – A furious rally in the final minute came up just short as the Knox College men fell to Illinois College, 61-58, in Galesburg on Tuesday.

The Prairie Fire (7-12 overall, 3-7 in the MWC) trailed by seven with under a minute to go, but buckets by Noah Campbell and Josh Stewart made it a one-possession game.

An Illinois College offensive foul with 11 seconds remaining gave Knox a shot at a tie, but Campbell's three was off the mark. In the ensuing scramble, Campbell flagged the ball down near midcourt, but his desperation heave hit the side of the rim, giving the Blue Boys the Midwest Conference contest win.

In the opening 20 minutes, the Prairie Fire were in the sharing mood, registering 10 assists on their 12 first-half field goals. Sharing the ball, combined with strong defense and a late 7-0 run, gave Knox a 29-23 lead at halftime.

In the second half, though, it was Illinois College that came out strong on both ends.

The Blue Boys put together a 26-8 run, taking a 49-37 run at the 9:30 mark. But Knox responded, answering with a 7-0 run that was capped by an emphatic Russell Wright dunk.

Illinois College answered right back, building the lead to seven before the final Prairie Fire push.

Wright led Knox with 11 points and nine rebounds. Josh Stewart added nine points and eight boards. Aydan Ayer added seven points and a team-high four assists. Campbell and Carl Dortch also chipped in with seven, while Vladimir Marinov scored six.

Knox College is off this weekend but back in action, visiting Cornell next Wednesday. The Prairie Fire return home on Saturday, February 7, hosting Beloit at 1 p.m.