FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Indiana Tech men's basketball team put forth a valiant effort and battled all game, but came up just short against Rochester College, 67-64, in a "Battle of the Warriors" on Sunday afternoon at the Schaefer Center.
Dominique Walls led the way for the Orange and Black with a game-high 20 points while setting career-highs in rebounds (13) and blocks (five) and picking up two steals.
Miles Robinson added 12 points and six rebounds while
Lavonte Davis chipped in 11 points, seven boards and two blocks.
Trailing 33-29 after 20 minutes, Tech used a 22-6 run in the first nine and a half minutes of the second half to take a 51-39 lead with 10:47 to go. Walls would have six of the 22 points and had three blocks during that stretch.
Rochester however, would not go quietly as they sought to defend their unblemished record and responded with an 11-2 run to cut the deficit to three and force head coach
John Peckinpaugh to call a timeout. The visiting Warriors would tie it up at the 6:19 mark off a Justin Nafso three-pointer, one of his three triples on the day as he finished the game with 17 points.
Another triple, this time by Paris Pereira, would give Rochester their first lead since the opening minutes of the second half and a Nafso layup would give the visitors a five-point lead with just over five minutes to go.
The hosts were unable to get closer than two however, as the Orange and Black went nearly four minutes without a field goal. A pair of free throws from Pereira would give Rochester a 66-62 lead with 18 seconds to go.
A layup from Robinson brought the Warriors within two and they fouled Pereira, who only hit one of the two free throws to give the hosts a shot at the buzzer. Robinson's triple however, would not stay down as Rochester hung on to the win.
Tech (4-4) returns to WHAC action on Wednesday when they host Lourdes in a doubleheader with the women's team. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. from the Schaefer Center and links to live stats and video will be available at IndianaTechWarriors.com.
