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

Box Score

Feb. 28, 2020 - A late scoring drought proved costly for the North Central College men's basketball team Friday night, as the Cardinals saw a close game elude their grasp and bowed out of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament with a 71-60 loss to Elmhurst College at Gregory Arena.
 
The setback was North Central's first at home since late November and was the first this season to occur after the Cardinals carried the lead into halftime. A 13-0 scoring run late in the second period was enough to push the Bluejays clear of the hosts for good.
 
Friday's first half saw four ties and seven lead changes. Trailing, 12-9, the Cardinals (21-5) put together a 9-0 run, bookended by jumpers from Connor Raridon, to take their largest lead of the night at 18-12 with 10:26 left in the first half. Elmhurst forced six straight missed shots on the defensive end and scored 10 straight points in a three-minute stretch to pull in front, though Michael Pollack's three-pointer with 1:26 on the clock gave North Central a 32-31 edge which it would carry into halftime.
 
The Bluejays (22-5) seized the lead back once the second half began as Lavon Thomas scored inside before coming up with a steal and feeding Derek Dotlich for a fast-break three-pointer. North Central stayed within striking distance and trailed by just a 52-50 count following Will Clausel's layup with 9:22 left. The bucket, however, was the Cardinals' last for more than five minutes, and Elmhurst guard Jake Rhode scored nine points in the game-defining surge.
 
Raridon led the Cardinals with 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists while Pollack scored 11 points. Rhode wound up leading all scorers with 25 points for the Bluejays.
 
First-round pairings and host sites for the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship will be announced Monday at 11:30 a.m. Central time on ncaa.com.

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