Game Notes: (WBK) Illinois Wesleyan University @ North Central College(2/6/16)

Final Score
NCC 87, Illinois Wesleyan 81

Game Summary
This was a game of quite a few runs, with the Titans (13-9, 8-3) using a 10-0 run relatively early in the opening quarter to take a 15-5 lead, but the Cardinals (11-11, 5-6) responded with an 11-0 run to take the lead. The Titans would grab a narrow lead back, however, and after spending much of the second quarter trading leads back and forth the Titans used a 9-0 run to open up a 36-29 lead, and would go into halftime up 38-33. The Cardinals came out of halftime on a mission though and scored 10 of the first 14 points in the third quarter to recapture the lead, if only momentarily. The teams again swapped leads, with the Titans taking a 61-59 lead into the final period. A Cardinal three less than a minute into the frame gave North Central a 62-61 lead though, and the Cardinals would not relinquish it, using an 11-3 run to help build a ten point lead and going up by as many as 13 late before hitting some free throws to seal the deal.

Key Stats

• Therese Pettersson (NCC): 6-10 FG (1-1 3PT), 4-4 FT; 17 pts, 4 reb (4 off), 1 ast, 2 stl. I think T has cemented herself as the starting "4" next year. She has developed a pretty good post game, getting multiple good looks at the rim, and she can shoot from outside when the need arises. With a solid post scorer, this team gets a little bit of balance.
• Jamie Cuny (NCC): 3-6 FG (1-3 3PT); 7 pts, 13 reb (3 off), 1 ast, 3 stl, 9 blk. I would have brought a dish to pass had I known that Jamie was throwing a block party. She's been a dominant force on defense in conference play, but Saturday night was another level. She controlled the glass fairly well as the game went on, but the nine blocks... holy crap. She got her last one early in the final quarter and I thought for sure she'd at least tie her old single game record, but it was not meant to be. Alas.
• Illinois Wesleyan: 3-14 3PT (21.4%), 16-26 FT (61.5%). In a tight game where you lose by that small a margin you can't help but look at these numbers. The Titans had their looks from deep thanks to some beautiful ball movement but their threes just didn't fall. Not helping their cause was a subpar night at the free throw line. Hitting even half of the ones they missed might have been enough to turn the tide.

North Central System Watch

• IWU Turnovers: 25. A little low by Cardinal standards, but still a solid performance. The Titans actually did a great job with their hands on defense, picking pockets a ton, but they gave up their fair share of giveaways too. Jamie Cuny led the way with three steals, while three other Cardinals had two apiece. 
• NCC 3PT: 16-43 (37.2%). I think this team has figured it out. They were closer to their season average in the first half, but got red hot in the second, hitting nine of their 17 attempts to top 50 percent for the frame. You're going to win a ton of games that way.
• NCC Charges Drawn: 3. I think this is a season high, or close to it. Anita Sterling drew a pair, one in each half, with her second half charge coming while she had four fouls, which is incredibly gutsy. Therese Pettersson also had one in the first half.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• Carthage 72 (9-13, 5-6), @ Augustana 65 (10-12, 5-6)
• @ North Park 49 (16-6, 7-4), Millikin 46 (7-15, 0-11)
• @ Wheaton 65 (16-5, 8-3), Elmhurst 43 (12-10, 6-5)

Final Thoughts
After almost four full seasons of System basketball, my dad was finally

Able to make it to a game on Saturday. He described it in one word: "frenetic." That's a good way to describe it.

I wasn't sure for a while that we'd steal this one. The officiating was absolutely atrocious for much of the game, with an 8-3 foul disparity in Wesleyan's favor after one quarter and several inconsistent calls that seemed to favor them. It also took over 31 minutes before the Cardinals even got a grip to the free throw line. Ultimately though, I think things evened out enough that it didn't impact the outcome.

This is a huge win for the team and gets them right back into the mix with three games to go while also proving just how deep the CCIW truly is. The Cardinalshave one final home game on Wednesday before closing the campaign at Elmhurst and at North Park.