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Noah Cleveland dunk
© AshtinElder
64
North Central (IL) NCC 6-14,2-9 CCIW
93
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 16-4,8-3 CCIW
North Central (IL) NCC
6-14,2-9 CCIW
64
Final
93
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
16-4,8-3 CCIW
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
North Central (IL) NCC 31 33 64
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 43 50 93

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Hoops Clobbers Cardinals

Titans crack 90 points for second time this season

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Strong shooting powered the No. 12 Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team to a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin win over North Central College Saturday, Jan. 31. The Titans (16-4, 8-3 CCIW) overwhelmed the Cardinals (6-14, 2-9 CCIW), 93-64, avenging an early season loss.

Sophomore Noah Cleveland (Normal, Ill.-Normal Community) put up game-highs of 29 points and 12 rebounds for his 13th double-double of the year. Junior Jackson Niego (Western Springs, Ill.-Lyons Township) scored a career-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, with junior Mason Funk (Normal, Ill.-University High) and senior Karlo Colak (Glencoe, Ill.-New Trier) also in double-figures. Funk just missed out on a double-double with nine rebounds alongside 16 points. Colak contributed 14 points. Niego topped the team with six assists and three steals.

The Green and White went 34-for-60 from the field, good for a 56.7 percent clip. IWU hit 9-of-23 three-point attempts and finished 16-of-21 from the free throw line. Illinois Wesleyan's defense overwhelmed NCC, as the Cardinals mustered a field goal percentage of 33.3. North Central was 9-of-29 from beyond the arc and 15-for-25 at the stripe.

The Titans dominated the stat sheet with leads in points off turnovers (14-6), points in the paint (42-12), fastbreak scoring (21-5), and rebounding (41-34). 

Three first-half three-pointers by Funk powered the Titans to a 25-15 lead just over halfway through the first period. 

North Central used a five-point spurt to cut Illinois Wesleyan's lead to five, but Colak hit a pullup jumper to put the Green and White back on track. The senior co-captain followed with another bucket the next time down the floor. 

Illinois Wesleyan moved its lead back to double-digits on a Niego three-pointer. Drawing plenty of attention from the Cardinals, Cleveland kicked out to Niego for a triple to push IWU ahead, 40-30. The Titans knocked down one more three-ball before the break, with junior Casen Lawerence (St. Louis, Mo.-Westminster Christian) hitting from well beyond the arc.

Leading 43-31 out of the intermission, IWU rattled off an 8-0 run and created a lead too big for the Cardinals to overcome. 

The Titans remain at home Wednesday night, Feb. 4 against Wheaton. Tipoff inside the Shirk Center is set for 7 p.m.

 
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