Scots Clinch MWC Tournament Berth With Win Over Beloit

Scots Win 21st straight MWC regular season game

by Nathan Baliva

MONMOUTH, Ill. (02/01/2026) — The Monmouth College men's basketball team clinched a berth in the Midwest Conference Tournament with a 74-66 home win over Beloit on Saturday.. The Fighting Scots (16-4, 11-0) have won eight games in a row and celebrated Senior Day by securing a spot in the Feb. 27-28 tournament.

"It was great to get a win on senior day," said head coach Todd Skrivseth. "Those seven seniors have been tremendous for us on the court and in the classroom. We have to give Beloti credit they made it difficult for us today. I was happy with the way we played in the second half to grind out the win."

With seniors starting, Max Maring (Port Byron, Illinois) made two free throws and Turner Plumer (Canton, Illinois) scored in the lane. Payton Crims (Alsip, Illinois) hit a jumper for a 6-0 lead before the Bucs scored. Crims hit two free throws and Brock Card (Edwards, Illinois) made a layup to send the student section into a frenzy.

The usual starters subbed in after eight minutes and Cameron Thomas (Arlington, Texas) hit a 3-pointer. Maring added a 3-pointer as well but also received a technical for taunting as Beloit converted the free throws. Zay Brown (Peoria, Illinois) hit a pair of free throws for a 20-10 lead and added a tip-in. Thomas scored on a layup and fed Kyle Taylor (Moline, Illinois) for a layup on a fast break. Thomas threw down a dunk for a 28-15 lead before the Bucs scored 11 in a row after Thomas got hit with a technical foul. The teams traded points to end the half with Plumer ,making free throws.

Beloit tied the game on the first possession of the half before the Scots went on an 12-3 run. Brown scored four points in the run while Maring hit a 3-pointer and blocked two shots. Thomas threw down a dunk and Jason Huber (Carpentersville, Illinois) made a free throw, Taylor and Jase Whiteman (Andalusia, Illinois) hit jumpers for a 46-37 lead before Beloit scored off a turnover. Whiteman hit a 3-pointer and Brown made two free throws before Beloit cut the lead back to six. Plumer, Huber and Brown all scored in a quick 6-0 burst for a 59-48 lead with 5:20 to play.

Beloit scored the next four points before Brown converted a 3-point play. Beloit again cut the lead to six before Taylor hit two free throws. Maring added a free throw and a 3-pointer to make it 68-58 with under two minutes to play. Taylor hit four free throws and Brown threw down a dunk for a 74-63 lead before the Bucs hit a late 3-pointer.

Brown led the Scots with 17 points and 10 rebounds for another double-double. Maring scored 14 points while Thomas had 11 and Taylor added 10. Huber had seven rebounds while Taylor and Thomas had two steals. Maring blocked two shots and four players led the way with three assists each.

MONMOUTH MOMENTS: Monmouth last qualified for the MWC in consecutive seasons in 2018 and 2019 and 1998 and 1999 ... The Scots have won 21 straight regular season MWC games and 14 straight regular season MWC home games ... Brown has scored in double digits in every game he has played this season and in 30 straight games dating back to last season ... The 30-game streak is the second longest in Monmouth history, one behind the record ... He had his ninth double-double, surpassing last year's season total ... Brown moved into a tie with Kyle Duane and Will Jones for seventh on the career blocks list with 56 ... Thomas has scored at least 10 points in 14 straight games and he has 18 double digit games this season ... Taylor played in his 97th career game, fourth most in Monmouth history ... The 11-0 start in conference is the best since the 1989-90 team went undefeated as MWC Champions at 13-0 ... The senior class has won 63 games over four years, the most in 33 years and tied with the classes of 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1989 for sixth most amongst all senior classes in MC history ... Card set a new career-high with four rebounds ... Seniors Banks, Card, Crims, Huber, Maring, Plumer and Taylor were honored in a pre-game ceremony ... Monmouth won 87-55 at Beloit on Jan. 10 ... Monmouth leads the all-time series 69-67 ... The Scots are 18-10 against Beloit under Coach Skrivseth ... Monmouth has won five in a row against Beloit with an 8-2 record in the last 10 games ... The Scots head to second-place Grinnell on Wednesday with a 5:30 p.m. tip ... The next home game is Feb. 11 against Knox.