Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Box Score
AUSTIN, Texas (Dec. 29, 2019) - Closing a five-week stretch of games away from home with a flourish, the North Central College men's basketball team closed the 2019 portion of its schedule Sunday with an 83-79 victory over Sul Ross State University (Texas) at Concordia Fieldhouse.
The win is the fifth straight for the Cardinals (9-3), who improved to 7-1 in games away from Naperville thus far this season. North Central never trailed in the contest but did not have the win secured until the latest stages of a closely-contested second half.
The Cardinals outscored Sul Ross, 8-2, in the first four minutes, getting a pair of early three-pointers from Aiden Chang. North Central took the day's largest lead at 28-15 after Will Clausel sank two free throws and fed Michael Pollack for a three-pointer in a 19-second span.
The Lobos (4-5) were able to put together a 10-0 surge near the end of the first half, capped by a fast-break dunk by Cailen Bond off a steal by B.J. Hollis, to tie the score at 35-35. Clausel put North Central back in front to close the half, sinking two free throws after coming down with an offensive rebound just before time expired.
Sul Ross knotted the score at 37-37 just after play resumed, but a layup by Matt Helwig, two free throws from Blaise Meredith and a three-pointer by Matt Cappelletti put the Cardinals back in front, 44-37, with 17:31 to play. The Lobos closed the gap to two points on three occasions, the last of which came at 63-61 with 5:48 on the clock, but a three-pointer from Pollack and a three-point play by Cappelletti on successive possessions kept North Central a step ahead.
The Cardinals made 7 of 8 free throws in the final 1:19 to seal the win. North Central made a living at the charity stripe for the second straight game, making 26 of 33 attempts.
Clausel led the Cardinals in scoring with 15 points, including a perfect 8 of 8 at the free-throw line. Pollack totaled 13 points while Chang and Connor Raridon each scored 11 and Helwig finished with 10. Meredith grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds, while Cappelletti contributed five assists and Raridon recorded three steals.
Tristen Licon led Sul Ross with 20 points, while Aldon Johnson scored 16 and Hollis and Logan Dixon each put up 15.
The Cardinals host their first home game since late November on Saturday, hosting Wheaton College (8-2). Tipoff at Gregory Arena is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Click HERE for live coverage options.
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