Nov. 18, 2016 - Friday night's game between the Concordia-Chicago Cougars and the Illinois College Blueboys did not have the feeling of a season opener. Instead, the two teams played a free-flowing contest where both team's offenses looked more in mid-season form. The Cougars stayed close most of the evening and nearly pulled off a thrilling comeback, but the Blueboys had just enough to hold on for a 95-89 victory in game one of the Bill Merris Classic in Jacksonville11, IL.

Both teams got into a rhythm early, with sophomore Mitch Pelissier starting the Cougars' engine. He tallied twice in the first few minutes, and newcomer Jarek Hotwagner scored on a putback as CUC grabbed an 8-5 lead. However, the visitors missed out on a couple of chances over the next few minutes to expand the lead, and the home team clawed back to tie the game. With the score at 13-13, Illinois College's Tim Schappaugh heated up with eight straight points, and the hosts would hold the lead for much of the remainder of the half. They could not shake the Cougars though, as Pelissier tallied 14 in the half and Justin Saar 11 on 4-4 shooting, including all three shots from downtown. Concordia-Chicago also received a spark from new forward Rodrigo Nava who provided three blocked shots to go with overall strong defense. When the first half ended, the Cougars were close on the Blueboys' heels at 46-42.

Illinois College made it tough on CUC to come back in the second half as they shot 51 percent from the field and protected the ball. CUC remained tenacious and got a lift from centr Justin Mack who came off the bench and shot 6-8 to tie his career-high of 12 points. But the Blueboys rolled on as a 15-4 run gave them a 15-point lead with eight minutes remaining.

With the game getting away, the Cougars rallied behind senior Mike Walmer as they had success attacking the basket. When Walmer hit a three with 2:27 remaining, the Cougars had pulled to within three at 86-83. Schappaugh stopped the momentum briefly with a three-point play inside, but Pelissier hit from the outside, and it was back to a three-point game with 1:42 remaining. However, the Cougars missed some inside chances over the next minute, and the Blueboys were able to seal the deal at the free-throw line and hold on for the six-point victory.

Pelissier finished with a career-high 28 points on 11-22 shooting (including 4-5 from the outside) while pulling down eight rebounds and adding four assists. Walmer added 20 points and Saar 14 as the Cougars shot 47 percent overall for the game on 34-72.  Pelissier and Hotwagner pulled down eight rebounds each as the Cougars finished with 39 to the Blueboys' 41.

For Illinois College, Schappaugh was a one-man wrecking crew with 27 points (including 10-10 at the free-throw line) and 13 rebounds. He did get ample support however, as Max Stutsman scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds, and Peyton Dugan had 14 points and seven rebounds.

The Cougars will return to the floor on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 when they meet MacMurray College in the third-place game. The Highlanders suffered a one-sided loss to Nebraska Wesleyan University in Friday's other first-round game.