ROCKFORD, Ill. – After being down double-digits with just over eleven minutes remaining, the MSOE men's basketball team rallied back to defeat Rockford University on the road, marking their 14^th conference victory and highest since the 2018-19 season.

FINAL SCORE
MSOE RAIDERS – 65

Rockford - 62

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Going basket-for-basket to throughout the majority of the first-half, Rockford (10-13, 7-9 NACC) emerged for the first run to lead as a large as 32-23 with 6:31. MSOE (16-7, 14-2 NACC) began to catch fire, storming away on a 17-0 as Mason Dopirak knocked in six of those points, to lead by eight with 1:08 in the first half. The Regents would hit a three just before to buzzer to make it 40-35 at the break.
• The Regents would tie the game with just under 15 minutes to play, then continue to go on a 12-2 run to lead by double-digits with 11:11 to play. Dopirak would cut it the deficit in half with a jumper and free throw, but the Raiders would grab the lead back until Jonathan Burroughs would break down the court for a layup with 1:17 to go to take a 62-61 lead. After the Regents would tie up the game on a free throw, Ethan Johnson would become the hero, slipping down low and put it in to get the lead back with 24 seconds to play, with Dopirak sealing it with another free throw.  

MSOE STAT TRACKER
Points – Mason Dopirak (20)
Rebounds – Ethan Johnson (8)
Assists – Jonathan Burroughs (4)
Steals – Jonathan Burroughs & Ethan Johnson (1)
Blocks – Jonathan Burroughs & Chase Cummings (2)

WHO'S ON DECK
The Raiders head back home to begin their massive slate of integral conference games, kicking off on Wednesday, February 18^th, with St. Norbert College at 7:00 p.m.

For up-to-the-minute MSOE Raiders news, visit us at www.MSOERaiders.com. You can also follow the Red & White on Twitter @MSOE_Raiders and @msoe_raiders on Instagram.