Case Western Reserve University senior forward Cole Frilling scored 16 points to become just the 20^th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points, and junior forward Ian Elam recorded the first double-double of his career, as the ninth-ranked Spartans defeated Carnegie Mellon University 74-69 in the opening game of University Athletic Association play on Saturday afternoon in Horsburgh Gymnasium.

The Spartans remained undefeated on the year, improving to 11-0 overall and 1-0 in UAA play, while Carnegie Mellon dropped to 8-4 with an 0-1 UAA mark.

Entering the game needing 16 points to reach the milestone, Frilling hit a free throw with 38 seconds left in the game to help secure the victory and finish the contest with exactly 1,000 career points. He reached the mark in just 63 career games, the second-fewest among 1,000-point scorers in program history, and is the first Spartan player to reach 1,000 points since Dane McLoughlin (2011-15). He finished the game shooting seven-of-13 overall, including one-of-three from long range, and added eight rebounds.

Meanwhile, on a day when the Spartans struggled shooting the three ball, connecting on just five-of-25 attempts, Elam provided a dominating presence in the paint with the best game of his career. He finished the game with 21 points and 11 rebounds, both career-best marks, shooting 10-of-13 from the floor while adding three assists and a steal.

Junior guard Luke Thorburn also finished in double figures, scoring 10 points in the game for CWRU.

After Carnegie Mellon scored the first basket of the game, the Spartans went on an 11-2 run to take control of the contest early. The team's largest lead of the half came after a three by sophomore forward Umar Rashid put the Spartans in front 16-5 with 14:18 left in the period, but the Tartans answered with a quick 10-0 run of their own to pull back within a point with 11:08 to play. CWRU responded again, this time with five quick points from Frilling and a three from junior guard Daniel Florey to go back up 24-15 with 8:32 to go and remained up by at least five points for the remainder of the half, closing out the first stanza 32-23 lead.

CWRU expanded its lead to as many as 15 points in the second half, going ahead 47-32 on a three-point shot by graduate student guard Danny Frauenheim with 14:19 to play. The Tartans would not go away easily, pulling back within a point, 50-49, with 10:08 to go, before the Spartans rebuilt an eight-point lead, 59-51, with 6:09 left. Seven unanswered points by Carnegie Mellon made it a one-point game again, this time with four minutes to play, but a layup by Elam followed by a pair of free throws from Thorburn with 2:46 left gave CWRU a 63-58 advantage. CWRU maintained a lead the rest of the game and went ahead by as many as 10 points down the stretch before closing out the five-point win.

The Spartans finished the game shooting 44.8% overall (26-58) while holding Carnegie Mellon to 41.7% (25-60). CWRU's defense managed to hold R.J. Holmes, the UAA Sophomore Rookie of the Year in 2022-23, to a career-low two points in Saturday's game.

The Spartans will continue conference play next weekend with a pair of challenges on the road, facing fifth-ranked Rochester on Friday night in Rochester, N.Y., and 22^nd-ranked Emory on Sunday afternoon in Atlanta.