Game Notes: Wheaton College @ North Central College (2/25/12)

Final Score
NCC 75, Wheaton 58

Summary
In what was one of the most fun basketball games I have ever been to, the Cardinals (20-7) played at a good pace in front of a raucous home crowd. They battled back and forth with the Thunder (21-6), with neither team really jumping to a huge lead until the Cardinals went up 27-20 late in the first half. Wheaton then went on a run before the Cardinals came back to tie right before halftime. The game was close immediately after the break before the Cardinals slowly built a lead into double digits. Once it reached 50-40, the Cardinals unleashed holy hell to pull away, leading by no less than 13 the rest of the way.

Key Stats

• Kevin Gillespie (NCC): 8-14 FG (6-9 3PT), 22 pts, 4 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl. Gillespie was easily the MVP last night, not only because he was the leading scorer, but also because his buckets came at the biggest times. He hit a three with seconds left before halftime to tie the game, then was the catalyst to get NCC ahead. He hit a huge three to put NCC up 4, then one to answer a Wheaton deep ball, and hit the first of 4 straight threes by the Cardinals to open the floodgates. The icing on the cake: Wheaton played up on him after that last three, allowing him to drive, and he picked up assists on the next 3 triples. That's what you love to see from your senior captain.
• Charlie Rosenberg (NCC): 3-6 FG, 4-5 FT, 10 pts, 8 reb, 1 ast. I remember being concerned going into this season because of the loss of Jack Burchett down low for defense and rebounding. But Landon Gamble continues to be one of the best post players in the CCIW, and he has a great backup in Rosenberg (5.5 points, 3.2 boards in 13 minutes per game). Charlie was able to get in the paint and open up the perimeter for the Cardinals, while hitting big free throws and rebounding very well.
• Tim McCrary (WC): 4-14 FG, 3-4 FT, 11 pts, 3 reb, 4 stl. One of the CCIW's best and a member of the all-conference 1st team was held in check last night. Aaron Tiknis was on him much of the night, but he was constantly doubled down low, and really didn't get off many good shots, even down low. What amazes me is that he was held to only 3 boards. He averaged almost 10 rebounds during the season, so you have to credit the Cardinals for forcing the rest of the Thunder to pick up the slack.

Final Thoughts
You have to give Wheaton credit; they never gave up even when the Cardinals were taking their game to another level. Wheaton has a strong shot at making the tournament as an at-large team. As for North Central, many players (including Gillespie) said they largely fed off the crowd noise. This was probably the most packed I've ever seen Merner, and the student section brought their A-game. It was loud. It was great to see this old building come to life last night. Home court can really make a difference to your team.

Monday morning at 11:00, the NCAA will announce the pairings for the national tournament, as well as host sites. Who knows, maybe Merner will have a little more excitement this season. Either way, congratulations to the Cardinals, winning the CCIW Tournament for the first time since the inaugural tournament in 2006!