FOREST CITY, Iowa -- North Central University (NCU) men's basketball hit the road for tonight's game against the Valley City State University (VCSU) Vikings. Coming off of an exhilarating win Wednesday night, the Rams looked to keep their momentum going by coming home after the weekend with two more wins. Unfortunately those hopes were shut down, as NCU narrowly fell to the Vikings 74-87.

Game Recap

The first half started off with the first of what would be several three pointers from Seth Fuqua (Colorado Springs, CO, Vanguard Charter). In the preceding minutes, the game saw seven lead changes in what would be a high-scoring affair throughout all 40 minutes of action. The Rams showcase a red-shot shooting first half, by posting an efficient 62.5% clip from three and the field. Despite NCU's efforts on offense, the blue and gold headed into halftime facing a 44-51 deficit.

The second half is when North Central started to hone in on the Vikings' outside shooting threats. The Rams managed to keep VCSU's three-point percentage to shooting only 18.2%. Even with the Rams' defense along the perimeter stepping up, they were unable to grasp at any point in the second half. In the opening minutes of action, NCU started to build momentum by cutting the Vikings' lead down to 7 with 18:22 left to play. From there on, however, VCSU relied on a deep bench that contributed 37 total points to North Central's 18. This fueled the Vikings to a double-digit win over the blue and gold.

Looking Ahead

• Seth Fuqua led the team with 21 points and tallying 6 rebounds.
• Jonathan Thompson (Kansas City, MO, Park Hill South High School) followed Fuqua with 10 points and 8 rebounds.
• Jalen Dunlap (Houston, TX, Hightower High School) contributed 9 points with 6 rebounds.

Looking Ahead

In a very quick turnaround, men's basketball is at it again tomorrow in Forrest City, IA against Waldorf at 3pm. See updates on the men's basketball team on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for score updates throughout the season, and enjoy a free live stream of the game by navigating to ncurams.com/watch.