The Lake Forest College men's basketball team dropped its home opener 77-68 to the University of Chicago on Saturday.
Chicago jumped out to a 26-10 lead after eight minutes of play and was ahead 43-27 at halftime. The Maroons' largest lead of the game was 18 after a basket to begin the second half. The margin remained in double figures until a layup by junior forward Johnny Roeser made the score 53-44 with 13 minutes remaining. The margin shrunk to eight on another basket by Roeser with 11 minutes left, dropped to seven on a pair of free throws by freshman guard Alex Knight with 6:09 on the clock, and was down to six when sophomore forward Val Oplchenski laid one in with 1:16 to play. Lake Forest got no closer, however, as Chicago held on for the victory.
Roeser was 8-for-13 from the field, led the home team with 20 points, and added three assists a game-high nine rebounds. Senior guard Sean Espinosa was next on the team with 17 points and he dished out five assists. Freshman guard Ethan Augusto also reached double figures with 10 points.
Both teams shot 47 percent from the field but Chicago connected on nine three-pointers and the Foresters only three. Lake Forest, however, made 17 of 18 foul shots for the sixth-highest free throw percentage in team history. The home team also had a 36-24 edge in rebounds and committed 15 turnovers to the Maroon's six.
The loss dropped the Foresters' record on the season to 0-4 while Chicago improved to 2-0.
Lake Forest will be in action next against visiting Wheaton College Tuesday night at 7:00.