Monmouth held off a hard-charging Illinois College squad to post a 73-70 win in the Midwest Conference opener for both teams.
 
The Scots came back from a nine-point first half deficit to take a 36-34 halftime lead. Tied at 32-all with 1:51 left in the first 20 minutes, D.J. Swift drained a three for a 35-32 lead before Will Carius added a free throw with 38 seconds left. IC scored on a fast break in the final seconds to trail by two.
 
The Blueboys took a brief second half lead at the 15:10 mark before Dee Hyler's fast break bucket sparked the Scots' 9-2 run for a 54-47 lead. IC charged again, pulling within one at 68-67 with 42 seconds left, but the Scots answered the challenge when Tyler Houston scored inside, followed by Carius and Hyler three free throws in the final seconds.
 
Carius finished with a game high 38 points and 15 rebounds while Hyler added a dozen points.
 
Monmouth travels to Lake Forest next Wednesday.