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Nathan Boldt hits a huge three-pointer against NCC
© AshtinElder
91
North Central (IL) NCC 10-5,3-3 CCIW
99
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 13-2,5-1 CCIW
North Central (IL) NCC
10-5,3-3 CCIW
91
Final
99
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
13-2,5-1 CCIW
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 OT 2 OT 3 F
North Central (IL) NCC 31 37 11 7 5 91
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 39 29 11 7 13 99

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Hoops Outlasts NCC in Triple-OT Thriller

Titans move to 5-1 in CCIW standings

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Playing its first triple overtime game since 1981, the seventh-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team came away with a 99-91 win over North Central College Saturday evening, Jan. 11, as the University celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Shirk Center. The Titans jumped to 13-2 on the season and 5-1 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, while the Cardinals slipped to 10-5 (3-3 CCIW).

Illinois Wesleyan scored the game's first 13 points and held a double-digit lead for a majority of the first half, but North Central battled back to tie the game in the second half.

The Cardinals claimed their first lead on a bucket with 9:47 to play, grabbing a 53-51 advantage. The Titans responded with three-pointers from junior Nathan Boldt (Deer Park, Ill.-Barrington) and senior Nick Roper (St. Louis, Mo.-MICDS) to drive ahead, 59-55.

With Illinois Wesleyan up, 63-58, Roper drilled a corner three to give IWU an eight-point cushion, but North Central had one last run left. 

The Cardinals rattled off seven straight points to pull within one, 66-65. Senior Hakim Williams (Round Lake, Ill.-Round Lake) drew a foul on a take inside the paint and converted both free throws to give the Titans a three-point edge with 3:08 on the clock.

North Central leveled the score at 68 all with a three-point play with 1:20 to go. The Titans had three chances but could not find the go ahead bucket as the game sat level, 68-68, with 16 seconds on the clock. NCC had possession but two big-time defensive plays by senior Marko Anderson (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) kept the Cardinals from getting a shot off as the game eventually headed to overtime, 68-68.

Head coach Ron Rose called his final timeout with 16.1 seconds to go and the Titans trailing, 79-77. Funk inbounded the ball to Roper, who drove down the left side of the lane. North Central swarmed him near the block, but the senior pushed a pass through a ton of traffic to Anderson on the opposing block. With the NCC defense collapsed on Roper, Anderson finished a bucket off the glass to tie the game, 79-79.

Incredible defense by the Titans, and most notably freshman Josh Fridman (Norhtbrook, Ill.-Glenbrook North) on the ball, forced a miss on the Cardinals' game-winning attempt to force another OT period.

The second overtime saw the two teams trade buckets before Williams lifted the Titans to an 86-84 lead with 42 seconds remaining in the period. The Cardinals once again had the answer though as Ethan Helwig knocked down a pull-up jumper to knot the score and force yet another five minutes of game play.

Illinois Wesleyan elected to have Boldt take the jump ball to begin the third extra frame, which resulted in a win for the Green and White. Anderson hauled in the tip and Williams ultimately knocked down a pair of free throws to give IWU the lead for good. 

Boldt followed with a three-pointer and Fridman drew a charge on the defensive end with Illinois Wesleyan in control, 91-86. Williams and Roper added craft finishes at the rim before IWU closed out the win at the free throw line, 95-88.

Roper posted a career-high 29 points with nine rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Williams poured in 20 points with six boards, three assists, and three rejections. Anderson put together a career day, coming up in clutch situations for the Titans in the overtime periods. He scored 19 points and added a team-high 12 rebounds with a steal and a block, with 11 of his points coming in the three OT periods. Fridman rounded out the double-digit performers with 11 points.

Illinois Wesleyan converted 29-of-71 shot attempts, good for a 40.8 clip, while knocking down 9-of-32 three-point tries (28.1 percent). The Titans converted 32-of-37 free throw attempts. North Central finished 29-for-74 from the field (39.2 percent), but used a 14-of-28 effort from beyond the arc to keep pace. The Cardinals finished 19-for-24 from the free throw line.

The Green and White compiled a 52-39 lead in rebounding, a 12-9 edge in second-chance scoring, and a 34-20 lead in points in the paint. IWU also led fastbreak scoring, 11-7. NCC held advantages in points off turnovers (18-13), and bench points (39-28).

Illinois Wesleyan travels to Millikin University Wednesday night, Jan. 15, for a 7 p.m. tipoff inside the Griswold Center.
 

 
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