Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Jan. 10, 2024 - A furious back-and-forth battle went down to the wire at Gregory Arena Wednesday, as the North Central College men's basketball team fought off a strong start by North Park University to pull in front before an ill-timed dry spell left the Cardinals on the short end of an 84-79 final score.
North Central (5-11, 3-4 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) trailed early as the Vikings made five of their first six shots from the floor. The hosts took the lead at 22-20 after Erikas Gurskas scored 11 points in just more than two minutes, including a trio of three-pointers in a 71-second span, to prompt a North Park timeout with 9:23 left in the first half.
The Vikings (7-9, 2-5 CCIW) scored 11 of the game's next 13 points to take their largest lead at 31-24 and held a 41-36 lead with 1:43 on the clock before North Central closed with seven straight points to take a 43-41 advantage into halftime. Ethan Helwig batted an outlet pass out of the air into the hands of Drew Gaston, who returned the ball to Helwig for a jump shot before Gaston drew a foul and made two free throws with 45 seconds left. On the final possession of the period, Helwig fed Brian Johnson for a three-pointer from the left wing as time expired.
The final 12 minutes of the contest featured five ties and 13 lead changes. The Cardinals held a 58-54 lead following Ken Thomas's second-chance basket with 13:03 remaining before Davante Robinson hit a three-pointer and Phil Holmes scored in the lane on consecutive trips down the floor to nudge the visitors in front, 59-58. The teams traded baskets on the next six possessions before Terrance Moncrief's steal and layup left the score at 76-66 in the Cardinals' favor with 8:59 to play. Sean Molloy added a layup and a free throw on separate trips to extend the North Central lead to 70-66.
North Park moved back in front at 72-71 with 3:48 to play after outscoring the hosts, 6-1, over the next three minutes. Molloy made two charity shots, which were answered at the other end by two free throws from the Vikings' Kolden Vanlandingham. Molloy followed with a three-pointer off a pass from Johnson with 2:45 to play, leaving North Central in front by a 76-74 count, but the basket wound up being the Cardinals' last field goal of the evening. Julian Gatewood's three-pointer on the opposite end ignited a 10-3 North Park run to close the game.
Molloy totaled a career-high 15 points to lead a balanced North Central effort which featured six double-figure scorers. Thomas, Gaston, Moncrief and Ethan Helwig each scored 12 points for the Cardinals while Gurskas finished with 11. Helwig also grabbed 12 rebounds to achieve his second double-double of the season and paced the team with four assists.
Lance Nelson scored a game-high 21 points for North Park, while Vanlandingham and Shamar Pumphrey each scored 13 and Kenton Lei added 12.
The Cardinals travel to face Millikin University Wednesday, Jan. 17. Tipoff at the Griswold Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Click HERE for the full 2023-2024 schedule and live coverage options.
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