Augustana's Rick Harrigan, the CCIWs leading scorer entering the game at 24.3 points per game, made several clutch plays down the stretch to seal the win. The senior guard drained a three-pointer with just under a minute remaining to put the Vikings up 79-76. North Central was forced to foul and Drew Wessels hit two of two from the line to put Augustana up 81-76. Mitchell Raridon (Lincoln, Neb./Northeast) hit a trey from the corner with 11 seconds left to close the gap to 81-79 and give the Cardinals one last chance. However, Harrigan stole the ball on the ensuing inbounds and made an uncontested layup for the final 85-79 lead.
"Obviously, I was disappointed with the loss, but I was really disappointed with our play the last two minutes," said head coach Todd Raridon. "They also got some offensive rebounds that just killed us tonight. We didn't get it done at the offensive end either. Anything that could go wrong those last three minutes, did go wrong."
Harrigan finished with 29 points on 10 of 24 shooting. Jay McAdams-Thornton added 15 points.
Junior Adam Krumtinger (Towanda, Ill./Normal) led North Central with a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds. Anthony Simmons (Bolingbrook, Ill./Romeoville) totaled 19 points, five assists and five rebounds. Also finishing in double figures were Ray Vicario (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) with 14 points and Dan Walton (Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North) with 11.
The second half was a see-saw battle, with both teams taking multiple turns in the lead. After leading 40-34 at halftime, North Central fell behind 55-51 with 10 minutes remaining. The Cardinals surged back ahead 60-58 after a Walton three-pointer, only to have the score tied at 60s just second later after a basket by McAdams-Thornton. Simmons later put the Cards up 74-69 with a layup inside before Augustana closed the game with a 16-3 run.
North Central hosts Elmhurst College Wednesday, Jan. 25, at 7:30 p.m.