After leading the entire first half and much of the second, Illinois Wesleyan tied the game and then took a one-point lead at 59-58 after two free throws by Zach Freeman with 6:09 remaining in the game. North Central tied it at 60s with 3:59 left after two free throws by Anthony Simmons (Bolingbrook, Ill./Romeoville). Patrick Flanigan (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) gave North Central its last lead at 63-62 with 3:17 on the clock after draining a three-pointer from the wing.
The Cardinals's Ray Vicario (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) brought the team to within one at 71-70 with 12 ticks remaining after a three-pointer from the wing. However, the Titans' Matt Arnold calmly sank two free throws on the other end with 10 seconds left. Vicario got off one last three-pointer at the buzzer that went just wide.
Daniel Walton (Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North) led all scorers with a season- and career-high 24 points. Walton was 10 of 16 from the field and 2 of 4 from three-point range while also grabbing seven rebounds. Simmons added 17 points, and Vicario 14 points and seven assists.
Illinois Wesleyan was led by Freeman's 20 points and six boards. Keelan Amelianovich had 13 points, Dauksas 10, and Cory Jones 10 points and nine rebounds.
North Central got off to a great start in the first half, jumping out to a 13-5 lead after a three-pointer from Walton. The Cardinals later led 16-9 with 13:32 on the clock after a thunderous one-handed dunk in the lane by Simmons. At the end of the half, Vicario crossed over his defender and lifted a soft floater in the lane that connected with three seconds on the clock for a 34-30 lead at the break. Walton had 15 first-half points on 7 of 10 shooting while Simmons added eight points on 3 of 4 from the field. Amelianovich’s 10 points led the Titans.
Early in the second half, North Central led by as many as seven points after a trey from Walton at the 13:02 mark. A three-pointer from Daniel Doyle (Wheaton, Ill./Glenbard West) gave the Cards a six-point lead at 55-49 with 9:33 left. A baseline trey from Adam Teising (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central) put North Central up 58-52 at the 8:02 mark.
North Central plays its final game of 2004-05 when it hosts North Park University Saturday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.