FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Indiana Tech men's basketball team held off Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) rival Rochester University, 76-74, Wednesday evening inside the Schaefer Center.
 
Mitch Morken had a season-high 20 points while adding five rebounds, five assists and two blocks while Josh Kline had 12 points and 13 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season. Cory McKinney and Dilyn Good each chipped in 15 points, with the latter going 5-6 from behind the three-point line and the former adding four assists.
 
Rochester got out to a 5-0 lead for their first and only lead of the game, but Tech came back with a 10-0 spurt, with Morken and Good knocking down triples in the middle of the run. The Orange and Black could never pull away during the first half though, only extending their lead to six points over the final 13 minutes of the session. A triple from Good made it a 17-11 game at the 10:51 mark, but the visitors came roaring back to tie it up at 19-all with six minutes until the intermission. Tech eventually regained the lead following a 7-2 run from Morken, but led just 29-27 at the break.
 
The offensive firepower begin to click on all cylinders in the second half for Tech as they grew their lead to 13 points with a 23-12 run over the first eight minutes of the period. An 11-4 spurt pushed the advantage to 52-39 at the 12:28 mark while McKinney recorded nine points in the first seven minutes of the half to power the offense. Rochester would not go away quietly into the night though as they ratcheted up the defensive pressure, forcing five Tech turnovers in six minutes and going on an 13-4 run to bring them within four points at 59-55 and 5:39 to go in the game.
 
Rochester cut the deficit down to one possession multiple times within the final four minutes of the game, but could not get the score tied down the stretch as Tech kept the lead just out of distance. A pair of free throws from Morken with 16 seconds left in the game made it a five-point lead, but the visitors would come back with a triple to make it a 75-74 game and 2.6 seconds left to go. Morken made the front end of his next trip to the charity stripe to force a desperation shot for the win from Rochester, but it would come up short as Tech held on for the 76-74 win.
 
Tech (13-9, 9-3 WHAC) returns to action Saturday as they host Siena Heights University. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. from the Schaefer Center.