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

Feb. 15, 2023 - Treating the Gregory Arena faithful to a thoroughly dominant performance in its final home game of the regular season, the North Central College men's basketball team secured its spot in the postseason Wednesday with an 87-75 victory over Carthage College.

The Cardinals were led by seniors Matt and Ethan Helwig, who supplied 57 of their team's points. After a 38-point effort in Saturday's overtime win over Illinois Wesleyan University, Matt Helwig ripped the nets for 37 points on 14 of 22 shooting (7 of 12 from three-point range) along with seven rebounds and four steals. Ethan Helwig, meanwhile, scored 20 points, grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and shared the team lead in assists (four) with Shea Cupples.

Owning a 20-15 advantage after nine minutes of play, North Central (13-11, 8-8 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) outscored the Firebirds, 11-2, over a three-minute stretch to take its first double-digit lead. Matt Helwig scored the first nine points of the rally, delivering a three-pointer, steal and layup in just a 21-second span, before Ethan Helwig scored in the lane to give the Cardinals a 31-17 advantage and prompt a Carthage timeout with 8:12 on the clock.

The hosts led by double digits throughout the second half, pulling ahead by as many as 25 points. North Central tied a season high with 13 made three-pointers in 30 attempts and owned a 44-30 rebounding advantage. Mitch Lewis added 12 points off the bench for the Cardinals while Carthage (16-8, 8-7 CCIW) had four double-figure scorers, led by Antuan Nesbitt's 15 points.

Matt Helwig became the seventh player in the men's basketball program's history to score at least 1,500 career points (1,530) and moved into a tie with Matt Cappelletti '20 for fifth all-time in three-pointers made (161). 

The Cardinals have clinched their berth in next week's CCIW Tournament, with the first round set for Tuesday. Pairings and first-round sites will be determined Saturday. North Central closes out the regular season Friday with a non-conference game in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin against Marian University (14-9). Tipoff at Sadoff Gymnasium is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. 

Download the free North Central Cardinals app, available for iOS and Android devices, to receive up-to-the-minute news, scores and updates on your favorite North Central teams. Click HERE for more information.