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Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

Box Score

Jan. 2, 2010 - The North Central College men's basketball team closed its 2009-2010 non-conference schedule with a flourish Saturday, dominating play on the inside and wearing a path to the free-throw line yet again in a 74-66 victory over visiting Adrian College (Mich.) at Gregory Arena.

The Cardinals (7-4) owned a 36-24 rebounding advantage on the evening, which led to a 20-6 edge in second-chance points. After attempting 42 free throws in Wednesday's win over Rockford College, North Central went to the line 35 times against Adrian, making 25. The Cardinals shot 24 charity tosses in the second half alone.

North Central enjoyed a strong start for the second straight contest, rolling to an 18-6 advantage in the first 12 minutes of play. The Bulldogs (5-6) scored six straight points to cut their deficit in half, but the hosts put up the next 11 points to take their largest lead of the first half at 29-12. Jon Knapczyk scored five straight points during the rally.

After taking a 34-18 lead into halftime, North Central extended its advantage to 42-22 following a layup by Knapczyk with 17:04 to play. The Cardinals led comfortably for most of the period, as Adrian was unable to get within single digits until 1:57 remained, when Delano Collins made two free throws to narrow the gap to 69-60.

A three-pointer by the Bulldogs' Wesley Reed cut the lead to 70-65 with less than a minute to go, but Brian Evans and Derek Raridon each stepped up and hit a pair of clutch free throws to keep the guests from mounting a serious threat.

Raridon crested the 20-point plateau for the sixth straight game, scoring a game-high 26 points. He made 7 of 11 shots from the floor and 11 of 12 at the line. Knapczyk tied a career high, set against Rockford, with 16 points, while David Twyman finished the night with 10 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

Jovon Mosley was Adrian's top scorer with 13 points. Michael Staley scored 12 and Cody Barnes put up 11.

The Cardinals open College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin play on Wednesday, hosting Illinois Wesleyan University at 7:30 p.m.