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

Nov. 22, 2022 - Embroiled in a battle to the finish for a third consecutive outing, the North Central College men's basketball team came out on the short end of a 67-63 final tally Tuesday in the annual Battle of Chicago/Maple Avenue at Gregory Arena.

Tuesday's contest was a battle of attrition as three players fouled out and all scoring in the final 4:09 was done at the free-throw line. Trailing, 56-55, with six minutes left, Benedictine scored eight points in a span of 1:20 to take a 63-56 lead.

The Cardinals (3-2) narrowed the gap to 65-63 on two free throws by Matt Helwig with just under a minute to play. John Blumeyer drew an offensive foul to give the hosts another possession with 25.8 seconds on the clock. 

Ethan Helwig's three-point attempt on the other end was off the mark. North Central got a final chance after the Eagles' Marvin Agwomoh missed the front end of a one-and-bonus opportunity but was unable to get a shot on the basket.

Matt Helwig led all scorers with 26 points, making 9 of 9 free throws, and registered four assists while Ethan Helwig finished with 24 points and six rebounds. 

The Cardinals are idle until Wednesday, Nov. 30, when they host Carroll University in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) opener for both teams. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m

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