Anthony Simmons
The Cardinals received a boost with the return of sophomore Anthony Simmons (Bolingbrook, Ill./Romeoville). The 6-foot-5 forward contributed 16 points, six rebounds and three assists off the bench.
Midway through the second half with North Central ahead 50-45, Simmons first tapped in a missed layup by Mike Wilson (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central). On the following possession, Wilson dished to Simmons filling the lane for a thunderous one-handed dunk. Simmons then found Daniel Walton (Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North) underneath on a conventional three-point play and followed that by hitting 1 of 2 free throws himself to stretch the lead out to 11 at 58-47 with under seven minutes remaining.
Wilson finished with a team-high 15 points and 11 rebounds (nine defensive). Also scoring in double figures for North Central was Walton with 11.
Adrian was led by Brian Schaefer's 23 points and seven rebounds. Billy Collins Jr. Added 13 points (all of which were scored in the first half).
Both teams got off to a rough start shooting and the teams were tied at 13s after over 10 minutes of play. The Cardinals went on an 11-2 run the next five minutes to take a 24-17 advantage. The run consisted of a layup from Wilson, an baseline jumper from Simmons, two baskets from Dan Doyle (Wheaton, Ill./Glenbard West) and a Dan Larson (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) three-pointer. NCC led 29-21 at halftime.