Game Notes: (MBK) Millikin University @ North Central College (1/25/20)

Final Score
NCC 90, Millikin 55

Game Summary
This was a contest for maybe the first ten minutes or so as, despite giving up the opening basket, the Big Blue (4-14, 1-8) got out to an early 9-4 lead. But The Belt^TM-holding Cardinals (15-3, 8-1) retook a two point lead at 16-14, and after Millikin tied the game at 16 with 10:24 to play, we figured we'd be in for more of the same the rest of the half. But then the Cardinals went on an 8-0 run, forcing a Big Blue timeout, and after a couple free throws by them, a 12-0 Cardinal run put North Central in total command, as they took a 41-21 lead into the locker room. The Big Blue scored the first basket of the second half, but then never trailed by less than 20 after that point. A second chance dunk with just under seven to play served as the dagger, allowing Todd Raridon to call off the dogs, and the guys on the end of the bench got into the party as well.

Key Players

• Connor Raridon (NCC): 4-7 FG (1-1 3PT), 5-5 FT; 14 pts, 8 reb (3 off), 8 ast. Ho hum. Connor did a majority of his damage (8-4-3) before halftime, with all eight of his points coming late in the half as the Cardinals were putting the Big Blue away early. His eight rebounds were a game-high, as were the assist numbers (more on that shortly).
• Blaise Meredith (NCC): 4-6 FG (3-4 3PT), 1-1 FT; 12 pts, 2 reb (1 off), 1 ast, 2 stl. If Wednesday against Augie was Meredith's coming out party for the year, Saturday was a confirmation that he is indeed back, which might spell trouble for the rest of the CCIW. Other than his 5-8 day up in Kenosha back in December, this might have been Blaise's best outside shooting performance of the season to date, and he continued to wreak havoc on the defensive end as well. If he's truly back... look out.
• Sam Stichnote (MIL): 7-8 FG (1-2 3PT), 0-1 FT; 15 pts, 5 reb (1 off), 1 ast. The Big Blue freshman had himself a pretty good game in this one. He hit one three early in this one, then went off in the second half as the only real offensive threat for Millikin. His five rebounds were also a team high. He gives the Big Blue a good piece to help build around for the future.

Key Stats

• NCC: 25 assists. I could have gone a few different ways here: the Cardinals shot 50 percent from both the field (30-60) and beyond the arc (16-32), but the assist numbers have to be mentioned. That's 25 assists on 30 field goals, which is a ridiculous level of efficiency that was really only topped by assisting on 40 of 47 against Greenville earlier this year... which of course comes with an asterisk. That 25 assist number also needs to be put in the context of the Cardinals committing just five turnovers all game. That's a 5:1 ratio, which is absurd.
• MIL: 14 turnovers. In context, 14 turnovers isn't a ton for a 40 minute men's basketball game. It's a little high, but I usually wait to criticize it when you get closer to 20. But when those 14 turnovers lead directly to 24 Cardinal points... that's a problem. And of those 14 turnovers, eight came off Cardinal steals, which also didn't help.

CCIW Scoreboard Watch

• ELM 98 (17-1, 8-1), @ NPU 73 (3-15, 1-8)
• AUG 69 (12-6, 6-3), @ CRL 65 (9-9, 2-7)
• WHE 67 (12-6, 6-3), @ CAR 65 (11-7, 3-6)
• Bye- IWU (11-6, 5-3)
• WBK: MIL 74 (12-6, 5-4), @ NCC 73 (8-10, 4-5)
• WBK: @ NPU 57 (15-3, 8-1), ELM 38 (7-11, 2-7)
• WBK: AUG 69 (9-9, 4-5), @ CRL 56 (6-11, 2-7)
• WBK: WHE 68 (13-5, 6-3), @ CAR 57 (8-10, 3-6)
• WBK: Bye- IWU (12-5, 6-2)

Final Thoughts

I didn't really touch much on The Belt^TM in this one. I almost feel like I'm taking It^TM for granted, now that it's taken up residence in Naperville for almost three weeks. But It^TM seems to have taken a liking here for now, as the Cardinals have won 11 in a row, including four straight Belt^TM defenses.

This game was kind of a must-win with Elmhurst routing North Park earlier in the day, so the Cardinals keep pace in the race for the top of the conference. It was actually a day full of chalk, so things stay more or less the same as we come to the end of January. The Cardinals still hold the tiebreaker over Elmhurst at the moment with a head-to-head victory, which means that February 8th is getting furiously circled on my calendar as that's when the Blue Jays come calling.

But we can't look ahead too far yet. The Cardinals are off to Bloomington on Wednesday to take on Illinois Wesleyan. The Cardinals won the first matchup between the two, taking The Belt^TM in the process, and have won four straight down at the Shirk Center, including a thrilling comeback last season. Elmhurst, for its part, is off to Rock Island for a rematch with Augustana, so if there's ever a chance to get a little breathing room... this might be it.