Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
WHEATON, Ill. (Feb. 8, 2023) - Wednesday's College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) battle at King Arena was determined in a three-minute stretch of the second half, as the North Central College men's basketball team lost pace in a close game and was defeated by No. 8-ranked Wheaton College, 72-62.
Trailing, 27-24, at halftime, the Cardinals took their first lead of the evening by scoring the first five points of the second period. Ethan Helwig knocked down a three-pointer, then came up with a steal and fed Shea Cupples for a jumper and a 29-27 advantage.
Helwig's fadeaway jumper on the right baseline gave North Central a slim 34-33 lead with 13:56 to play, though the Thunder's Tyson Cruikshank answered with a three-pointer at the other end. Cruikshank scored again in the lane before a three-point play by Mitch Lewis closed the gap to 38-37 with 12:32 on the clock.
Over the next three minutes, Wheaton (20-3, 12-2 CCIW) shot six times from three-point range, making four, while holding the Cardinals scoreless to extend their advantage to 50-37. The visitors got no closer than eight points the rest of the way. Wheaton shot 59 percent from the floor (13 of 22) and 69 percent from three-point range (9 of 13) in the final 20 minutes as Cruikshank led all scorers with 33 points.
The Cardinals (11-11, 6-8) were led by Matt Helwig, who put up 16 points to give him 1,455 in his collegiate career. He now ranks seventh in the program's history in career scoring. Lewis and John Blumeyer each scored 11 for North Central and Blumeyer also led the team with a career-high eight rebounds.
The Cardinals host Illinois Wesleyan University (12-10, 7-6) Saturday at Gregory Arena. Senior Night festivities will be observed prior to tipoff at 7:15 p.m.
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