JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – A 17-0 run to start the second half propelled the Nebraska Wesleyan basketball team to a 107-78 victory over Illinois College in the championship game of the Bill Merris Tournament on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 19).
 
The Prairie Wolves continued their high scoring start to the season topping 100 points for the second time on the year as they shot the ball very well from 3-point range.  NWU was 18-38 from 3-point land as seven different players made 3-pointers.
 
NWU led 48-39 at halftime, then came out of the locker room on fire as they scored 17 straight points in the first four minutes of the second half to get up 65-39.
 
Freshman Jack Hiller was the story of the game on Saturday as he was on fire from long range.  Hiller made 8-10 on 3-point attempts to finish the game with a team-high 26 points.  Hiller was named the Tournament MVP for his performance in the two games.  Besides his 26 points, Hiller added six rebounds, two assists a steal and block.
 
Four other NWU players were in double figures in scoring.  Cooper Cook made four 3-pointers to score 16 points with four steals.  Nate Schimonitz had 15 points and a team-high six assists.  Deion Wells-Ross came off the bench to record his first double-double as a Prairie Wolf.  Wells-Ross scored 10 points and pulled down a game-high 18 rebounds.  Dylan Dirks also scored in double figures with 10 points.
 
NWU shot 50.7 percent from the floor as a team and made 10 more 3-pointers than Illinois College.  The Bluboys shot 45.9 percent as a team, and 8-19 from beyond the arc.  Illinois College also committed 17 turnovers against the Prairie Wolves full court press.
 
Joining Hiller on the all-tournament team were Cooper Cook and Nate Schimonitz.