CHICAGO – The trip to face Illinois Institute of Technology continued to be a frustrating one for the Lakeland University men's basketball team as it fell to the Scarlet Hawks 102-75 Saturday afternoon at IIT's Keating Sports Center.

The Muskies lost at Illinois Tech for the fifth straight time and remained winless on the Scarlet Hawks' homecourt since their joining the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference in 2018-19. Lakeland also was dealt its third NACC loss of the season, dropping to 2-3 in conference (8-4 overall) while IIT won its sixth straight in the NACC, improving to 8-7 overall and 6-2 in league play.

The Muskies entered Saturday among the top three-point shooting teams in NCAA Division III, but the Scarlet Hawks flipped the script. Coming in as a team hitting 34.9% on the season and in the middle of the conference averaging just over 7.5 threes per contest, Illinois Tech made 17 of 33 from long range (51.5%). The hosts also limited Lakeland to 5-for-19 shooting from three (26.3%), way below the Muskies' season averages of 12.8 threes/game and 41.3% shooting from deep.

Illinois Tech never trailed in the game and set a torrid shooting pace as the first half went on that Lakeland couldn't keep up with. The Muskies trailed 15-12 with 14 minutes left in the first half after a layup by Kai Buliox (So.-Milwaukee, Wis.), but the Scarlet Hawks went on a 23-5 run over the next six minutes. IIT scored on eight straight possessions, and a layup by Milos Dugalic gave Tech a 38-17 lead with 7:22 left in the first half.

Lakeland would get no closer than 18 points the rest of the first half and trailed 53-32 at halftime. Illinois Tech's lead ballooned to 34 points early in the second half at 72-38 with still more than 14 minutes left, and the margin would stay around 30 points the rest of the way.

The Scarlet Hawks finished shooting 53.3% for the game, making 40 of 75 shots, including 21 of 37 in the first half (56.8%) and 19 of 38 in the second half. Garrison Carter made 9 of 11 shots and scored 21 points, leading all five Illinois Tech starters scoring at least 13 points. Dugalic also added 17 points and 15 rebounds, pacing IIT to a 45-32 rebounding advantage.

Buliox carried much of the offensive load for the Muskies, scoring 22 points and adding seven rebounds. Cam Jaeger (So.-Oostburg, Wis.) also scored 14 points and Isaiah Hammond (So.-Milwaukee, Wis.) added 13 points and seven boards.

Lakeland finished shooting 42.9%, making 27 of 63 field goals, including 36.4% (12 of 33) in the first half. The Muskies scored 44 of their 75 points in the paint but were on the wrong end of an IIT 21-10 advantage in points off turnovers.

Lakeland is back in action Tuesday when it travels to face Concordia University Wisconsin at 7 p.m. in Mequon.