Elmhurst 71, NCC 60
Game Summary
This game started out in a similar fashion to the last one between these two teams, as the Cardinals (21-5) were able to trade some early leads with the Blue Jays (22-5), but there was no dry spell for Elmhurst on this night. North Central reached its high water mark about halfway through the first half with an 18-12 advantage and again a few minutes later at 25-19. But then the Jays went on an 8-0 run sparked by back to back threes. They couldn't take full advantage, and the Cardinals battled back to take a 32-31 lead into the locker room. Elmhurst looked fresher and more ready to open the second half, scoring the first five points to take the lead back, but the Cardinals kept it close thanks in part to both teams shooting themselves in the foot a little bit. After each team received a flop warning earlier in the game, North Central drew a technical foul for a flop about five minutes in, allowing the Blue Jays to go up four instead of three. Elmhurst let the Cardinals back in with a Class A technical foul (two shots), and drew a Class B for a flop of their own a few minutes later, the latter of which pulled the Cardinals back within one. But the Jays hit a three the next time down, then after trading layups, an end of bench Cardinal drew a Class A technical, giving the Jays a four point possession to help spark what turned into a 13-0 run to extend their lead to 15. The Cardinals got no closer than seven the rest of the way, as the Jays advance to tomorrow's CCIW title game with The BeltTM in their possession for the first time this year.
Key Players
- Jake Rhode (ELM): 7-16 FG (4-8 3PT), 7-7 FT; 25 pts, 7 reb, 2 ast. Three weeks after struggling in this same building, Rhode came out guns blazing, hitting an early three, but he only had eight at halftime. He came alive after the break though, scoring 17, including a couple more threes and a perfect 5-5 mark from the free throw line.
- Derek Dotlich (ELM): 5-11 FG (2-6 3PT), 3-3 FT: 15 pts, 2 reb (1 off), 2 ast, 3 stl. Dotlich's first game here was even worse (0-6, including 0-4 from deep if I remember right). But he got an early fast break layup to break out, and hit a couple big threes, one in each half. The three steals were a team high; Lavon Thomas had the other two for the Jays.
- Connor Raridon (NCC): 6-18 FG (1-4 3PT), 5-5 FT; 18 pts, 10 reb (2 off), 6 ast, 1 blk. On a night where pretty much everybody struggled, Connor did all he could to will his team onto the finals. But even his best effort wasn't enough, as the Jays did a pretty good job forcing him into tough shots, and he missed at least one point blank layup that could have turned the tide.
Key Stats
- NCC: 22-60 FG (36.7%), 7-25 3PT (28.0%). That's not going to get it done. Elmhurst played good defense, but like I just touched on, the Cardinals missed, that I can clearly remember, three point blank clean layups in just the second half. It wouldn't have been enough to fully turn the tide, but hitting those maybe stops the bleeding and gives you energy to get a stop. I don't know. The threes not falling tonight either didn't really help.
- ELM: Outrebounded NCC 41-38. Each team had 31 defensive rebounds... meaning the Jays got three additional second chance opportunities, scoring eight second chance points to North Central's four. Combine that with the three missed layups by the Cardinals mentioned above... that's 10 of your 11 points that made the difference. I feel like saying that though does a disservice to the Blue Jays, because the stat line kind of bears out what the eye test tells you. The Jays had more energy and played like it, especially in the second half.
This was a great one to open the evening. The Vikings (18-8) seemed to be in control for most of it, and actually held the lead for over 36 minutes of game time, and were up by as many as seven in the first half, but the Titans (19-8) came back to tie a couple times before going into the break down 34-31. The Vikings again tried to pull away in the second half, but couldn't get farther than six up, and the Titans managed to come back late to tie a couple times again before taking the lead for good with 1:36 left. Peter Lambesis was ridiculous, putting up a game-high 28 points, Cory Noe added 17, Matt Leritz finished with 11, and Alex O'Neill only had six points but played some great defense to lead the Titans to the upset win. Austin Elledge and Micah Martin each had 19 points to pace the Vikings, while Pierson Wofford chipped in 15.
Bonus Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
I was really on watch for this in a neutral game. It was Grey Giovanine's second trip to Naperville this season, so it was the second time of getting to look for it. Ultimately, he was chill with regards to the jacket even as he was laying into some of his players, before finally removing it with 4:05 to go in the first half.
Bonus Grey Giovanine Jacket Watch
I was really on watch for this in a neutral game. It was Grey Giovanine's second trip to Naperville this season, so it was the second time of getting to look for it. Ultimately, he was chill with regards to the jacket even as he was laying into some of his players, before finally removing it with 4:05 to go in the first half.
Women's CCIW Tournament Watch
- (1) WHE 76 (20-6), (6) NCC 44 (12-15)
- (2) IWU 76 (18-8), (5) AUG 75 (14-13) (OT)
Final Thoughts
With that out of the way, let me tip my hat to the Blue Jays. After a heartbreaking loss to the Cardinals at Elmhurst back in December, then a rough trip to Naperville three weeks ago, they were clearly up for this one, and definitely outplayed the hosts tonight. They earned their way to the title game, where they are going up against a never-say-die Illinois Wesleyan team for the CCIW's automatic bid. The Blue Jays should be in the NCAA Tournament already; this would be a formality for them. The Titans almost definitely need to win tomorrow night to get in.
As for the Cardinals, I think they're pretty safe. They entered the weekend ranked fourth in the Central, and while they may drop in the final set, they've set themselves up nicely the past few weeks to still have the resume to make it as an at large. They should be far enough away from the bubble that they won't have a ton of drama on Selection Monday. But the loss today, in addition to passing on The BeltTM to their vanquishers, it also likely ends any chances of NCAA Tournament games in Naperville.
I'll probably do a writeup on the CCIW title game tomorrow or Sunday (maybe Monday, depending) since I'll still be working that game. Monday, once the bracket is out, I'll have a look at what the Cardinals are looking at for a tournament matchup, assuming they do in fact make it.
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