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MBB | IWU at Wheaton
73
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 8-1,2-1 CCIW
48
North Central (IL) NCC 4-3,1-1 CCIW
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
8-1,2-1 CCIW
73
Final
48
North Central (IL) NCC
4-3,1-1 CCIW
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 36 37 73
North Central (IL) NCC 20 28 48

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Hoops Bounces Back in Big Way at NCC

Titans used a 25-0 run over 10 minutes to cruise past Cardinals

NAPERVILLE, Ill. - A dominant defensive effort led the fourth-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team to a 73-48 win at North Central College Wednesday night, Dec. 15. The Titans moved to 8-1 on the season, including 2-1 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, while the Cardinals fell to 4-3 (1-1 CCIW). 

Illinois Wesleyan trailed in the early goings before piecing together a 25-0 run over nearly a 10-minute span to take control. North Central grabbed a 12-9 lead with 13:35 to go in the opening period, but then went cold from the field.

Senior Matthew Leritz (St. Louis, Mo.-St. Louis University HS) hit a layup on a pass from senior Peter Lambesis (Mt. Prospect, Ill.-Prospect), and junior Lucas Heflen (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) hit a triple to give IWU a 14-12 lead with 12:01 on the clock.

Seven straight points from junior Luke Yoder (Normal, Ill.-Central Catholic) was followed by back-to-back three-pointers from junior Cody Mitchell (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles East) and senior Cory Noe (Mahomet, Ill.-Mahomet Seymour). Leritz finished off the run with an and-one to give Illinois Wesleyan a 34-12 lead with just over four minutes to go in the half. 

The Green and White expanded on its 16-point halftime lead, going up by as many as 28, en route to the 73-48 victory. 

Lambesis led all scorers with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, while also tallying seven assists, four rebounds, and a pair of steals. Yoder finished with 13 points, with Noe and Leritz adding 12 and 11, respectively. 

Leritz grabbed a team-high seven rebounds as Illinois Wesleyan held a 36-28 edge on the glass. 

North Central entered the evening as the top offense in the CCIW, but could not find its stride thanks to IWU's strong defensive effort. The Cardinals converted just 32.7 percent (17-of-52) of their shot attempts, including 17.4 percent (4-for-23) of three-point tries. Meanwhile, the Titans were efficient on the offensive end. Illinois Wesleyan went 29-for-55 (52.7 percent) from the field and 9-for-24 (37.5 percent) from beyond the arc. 

Matt Helwig, who entered the game as the CCIW's leading scorer at 27.7 points per game, was held to 13 points on the night thanks to suffocating defense by Lambesis. Lambeiss was one of three Titans to finish with two steals, as IWU swiped nine times to NCC's six thefts. The Green and White made the most of the miscues, turning them into a 27-9 advantage in points off turnovers.

Illinois Wesleyan travels to St. Louis, Mo. Sunday, Dec. 19, for the newest chapter in one of the great non-conference rivalries in Division III as IWU takes on Washington University in St. Louis. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at WashU.

 
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