FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Box Score
INDIANOLA, Iowa (Dec. 10, 2011) - The North Central College men's basketbal team dropped to 0-3 in road games this season on Saturday, as Simpson College pulled away in the second half and defeated the Cardinals, 81-72, at Cowles Fieldhouse.
The teams went into halftime tied at 34-34, but the Storm connected on over 60 percent of their second-half field-goal attempts and never gave North Central an opportunity to take control of the contest.
The teams played to a 6-6 stalemate after the first five minutes, but Simpson (3-5) got a three-pointer from Elijah Knox and a dunk by Cornelius Mosby to prompt a Cardinal timeout. Derek Raridon completed a three-point play then pulled up for a three-pointer on the fast break to give North Central a brief 12-11 lead, but the Storm's Zack Barragan canned a three-pointer on the next trip down the floor to put the hosts ahead once again at 14-12.
Trailing, 21-16, the Cardinals (3-3) got a three-pointer from Vince Kmiec and a jumper by Raridon before Ryan Broyles' three-point play gave North Central the lead once again at 24-21 with 7:16 left in the first half. Simpson scored the next seven points and led until 1:50 remained in the period, when Kmiec sank another three-pointer to put the Cardinals ahead, 34-32. Barragan, however, was fouled on the final possession of the half and made both free throws to send the teams into the break deadlocked at 34-34.
North Central held a one-point lead early in the second half before the Storm scored nine straight points to pull ahead. Simpson led by as many as 11 points in the second period and led by at least seven points throughout the final five minutes. The Storm made 16 of 26 (61.5 percent) of their second-half field-goal attempts and 12 of 13 free throws.
The loss spoiled a career-best performance for Kmiec, who put up career highs of 20 points and six rebounds, making 6 of 10 three-point shots. Kmiec also tied a career best with four steals and shared the team lead in scoring with Raridon. CJ Goldthree put up 13 points and led the Cardinals with seven rebounds.
Chad Boston paced Simpson with 22 points, while Knox finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Barragan added 16 points.
The Cardinals travel to face the University of Wisconsin-Platteville (4-4) on Tuesday. Tipoff at Bo Ryan Court is scheduled for 7 p.m.
