Cedric Sims (pictured) led MU with 29 points in a 90-80 win over Indiana Tech on Wednesday night.

LIVONIA, Mich. – Double-digit scoring outputs from four Crusaders – led by Cedric Sims’ (Canton, Mich.) game best 29 – the Madonna University men’s basketball team downed visiting Indiana Tech 90-80 Wednesday night inside the Activities Center. With the win MU improved to 14-10 over all and 6-2 in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play. Tech fell to 11-12, 4-4 in loop play.

Tech opened the contest by scoring the first seven points of the game. Jon Battle (Cleveland, Ohio) – playing against his former team – got MU on the board with 15:49 left in the half off of a IIT turnover to make it 7-2. The Warriors increased their lead to 14 over the next two minutes, getting to the 14 point mark on a triple by Shaun Cabrera and forcing MU boss Chuck Henry to call a time out with 12:55 showing on the clock.

Madonna then went on a 21-3 run to tie the game for the first time all night at 25-25 with just under seven minutes to go. The two sides traded scores with Tech taking the lead two more times in the half before a D.J. Bridges (Canton, Mich.) jumper in the lane gave the Crusaders a brief 38-36 lead – their first of the game. Tech tied the game for the fifth time on an Anthony Johnson lay-up with just four ticks left to send both the two teams to the locker rooms tied at 38.

The Warriors took a pair of leads early on in the second half but a Sims turn around jumper knotted the game at 42-all with 17:46 left in the contest. The Crusaders took the lead for good with 17:42 on a Battle lay-up off of a Charlie Henry (Canton, Mich.) steal to give the home side a 44-42 lead.

Madonna built its lead out to as many 13 on two separate occasions before closing the game out with the 10-point win. Sims led MU with his 29 as Battle added 23 points to go along with 14 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. Bridges chipped in with 20 markers of his own for the victors. Brad Webster led Tech with 20 points and 11 boards.

The win, Madonna’s 14^th of the season, ties a school record for wins in a season with the 2002-03 squad that went 14-15. It also sets up a first place show down on Saturday in Grand Rapids as 16^th ranked Aquinas also sits at 6-2 in WHAC play after a 66-54 win over Cornerstone tonight.