Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Nov. 29, 2016 - Unable to find any rhythm on the offensive end, the North Central College men's basketball team suffered its first loss of the season on Tuesday, absorbing a 57-40 defeat at the hands of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville at Gregory Arena.
The Cardinals (3-1) rallied to tie the game midway through the second half despite season-low 29.1 percent shooting (16 of 55) from the floor, but an extended scoring drought at the end of the evening put an end to North Central's comeback chances.
North Central led, 10-5, after five minutes of play before the Pioneers (5-1) clicked off nine straight points to pull in front. The Cardinals got a pair of defensive stops and an inside basket from
Sam Fehrle to slow the bleeding, but the visitors followed by knocking down five straight shots, three from three-point range, to extend the lead to 27-14 with 5:14 left in the first half.
The hosts trailed, 31-19, in the final minute but got a putback from
Alex Sorenson and a buzzer-beating three-pointer from
Connor Raridon to head into halftime facing a 31-24 deficit. The Cardinals opened the second half with a layup by
Jagger Anderson and a three-pointer from
Erwin Henry to further narrow the gap, and after limiting Platteville to 1 of 8 shooting in the first eight minutes of the period, North Central tied the score at 35-35 on Anderson's three-pointer with 12:12 to play.
The Pioneers' Jake Showalter countered with five straight points to spark a 14-2 run that restored the visitors' lead to 49-37. Sorenson knocked down a three-pointer with 6:35 to play, though it turned to be North Central's final points of the night.
Sorenson finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots, while Raridon finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Robert Duax paced the Pioneers with 15 points and nine boards.
The Cardinals host Illinois Wesleyan University (5-0) in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) opener for both teams on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
