Game Notes: (MBK) Aurora University @ North Central College (12/12/18)

Final Score
NCC 83, Aurora 73

Game Summary
Things did not start great in this one as the Spartans (2-4) opened the game on an absurd 11-0 run. The Cardinals (7-1) finally broke the ice about four minutes in, but the Spartans kept up their attack and that 11 point advantage. But bit by bit, the Cardinals started eating into that deficit, eventually using a 15-3 run to take the lead. They never relinquished it from that point on, pulling ahead by as many as seven before settling into intermission with a 38-33 advantage, and about two and a half minutes into the second half pushing it to double digits on a Blaise Meredith steal and breakaway dunk. The Spartans would get no closer than seven the rest of the way, leading by as many as 17 before garbage time when both teams largely emptied their benches.

Key Players

• Connor Raridon (NCC): 6-11 FG (0-1 3PT), 11-12 FT; 23 pts, 9 reb (3 off), 4 ast, 2 stl. Connor will probably have to wait until Saturday to join the 1,000 point club, as he came eight points short tonight, but was pretty good in this one. He more so did little things in the first half, notching six of his points and eight rebounds then before getting to the rack and the line in the second half.
• Blaise Meredith (NCC): 5-10 FG (2-3 3PT), 8-8 FT; 20 pts, 5 reb (2 off), 1 ast, 3 stl. Blaise was the dominant force in the first half for the Cardinals, especially during the comeback. He scored 11 of his 20 in the first half and was phenomenal at the line, and continued his strong game in the second half with the aforementioned breakaway dunk. He also had a beautiful tip-in off an inbounds pass in this one.
• Matt Cappelletti (NCC): 4-11 FG (1-4 3PT), 2-2 FT; 11 pts, 13 reb (7 off), 3 ast. Ho hum, another double-double. Cap's outside shot continues to have its issues, though the fact that he has confidence to still take them is encouraging. Also encouraging is that he's still attacking the basket and getting his points elsewhere. In a game where North Central, amazingly enough, had a size advantage, he made the most of it tonight.

Key Stats

• NCC: 24-26 FT (92.3%). This was an outstanding showing at the line that included a pair of technical free throws (see more on that below), but my dad via text compared it to a pitcher throwing a perfect game. The Cardinals hit their first 22 shots from the line before Aiden Chang "blew [it] with two outs in the (sic) 8th." Per North Park's Gregory Sager, the D-III record is held by Albany, who went 28-28 from the line in a game against Potsdam State back in 1994.
• AUR: 27-54 FG, 7-14 3PT (50.0%). Four nights after getting lit up by North Park, there are still some concerns on defense for this North Central team. The Spartans shot well, especially early on to build that lead before seemingly coming back down to earth as the game went on. I say seemingly because they topped 50 percent in the second half. This wasn't just hitting threes, they also got to the basket too easily in many cases. It's a good showing for Aurora against what's supposed to be a good defensive team, though to be fair the Cardinals did make a number of nice defensive stops in this one.

Final Thoughts

I hate to address officiating, especially after a win, but I don't think either coach was particularly pleased after this one. Both Todd Raridon and Aurora's Lance Robinson were in officials' ears all night, pleading for calls, which in and of itself isn't unusual, but both guys had complaints, and I'd say both were valid. Robinson though drew a technical foul in the second half following a loose ball situation where the Cardinals recovered and called timeout. Robinson, from the far end of the floor, didn't think they had possession, and dropped an F-bomb in his complaint to the official, earning himself the T, which he questioned as it was called even though dropping an F-bomb to an official will earn you the tech most of the time.

Game-wise, it was good to see North Central not lose composure after falling behind by so much so early, working their way back in with a balanced attack and making enough stops even though the scoring was a little high for probably a lot of people's tastes. But they followed up a tough loss with a nice home win to cap off a 3-1 homestand, which you take every time.

It gets tough this weekend though as the Cardinals head up to Wheaton to take on the Thunder. Wheaton is a little hard to figure out; they've lost some games they shouldn't have, then turn around and have Aston Francis do Aston Francis things like tonight when he dropped a career-high 54 in a win over UW-Platteville. North Central, needless to say, will need to keep him in check if they want to continue the win streak they have over the Thunder, especially in a tough King Arena.