MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Tonight's game between North Central University (NCU) and Bethany Lutheran College (BLC) is a crucial piece of the Upper Midwestern Athletic Conference (UMAC) playoff seeding puzzle. Currently sitting in third place, NCU had a chance to possibly become the second, third, or fourth seed depending on the outcome of tonight's matchup and also several other factors from around the conference. Northwestern won their matchup with a final score of 69-62, and North Central lost in a nail-biter of an overtime competition with a final score of 68-76. This puts North Central at the number three seed in the UMAC playoffs, giving them home-court advantage right out of the gate.

Game Recap

The first half was off to a defensively sound start for both teams. With the Vikings shooting 39.5 percent and the Rams shooting 37.1 percent by the end of the half, a majority of this half's points were recorded from inside the paint. BLC initially started with an unanswered six point run until Jonathan Thompson (Kansas City, MO, Park Hill South High School) scored two free-throws and a bucket to close the gap. Bethany Lutheran responded with two midrange jumpers and a three to put the Viking up by nine points. The Rams called a timeout followed by two clutch buckets by Tanner Holtman (Aurora, CO, Grandview High School). With 6:25 left in the half, the Rams were down 17-24. For the rest of the half, the Rams and Vikings exchanged three-pointers and paint touches until Cameron Thomas (Aurora, CO, Grandview High School) drained a three and got the ball back for Jalen Dunlap (Houston, TX, Hightower High School) three to go up by three with 16 seconds left. BLC answered with a three of their own to go into the first half tied at 34-34.

Within mere seconds of the second half starting, Seth Fuqua (Colorado Springs, CO, The Vanguard School) nailed a mid-range jumper to give NCU back the lead. The physical matchup continued into the second half, where half of the points were scored inside the paint. The Rams held the lead for six minutes until the Vikings closed the gap and tied it up at 45-45 with 11:27 still on the clock. Justin Castro (Kissimmee, FL, Gateway High School) converts layup and finally breaks the stalemate at 45. Contributing to North Central's run, Thomas hits a dagger three with Castro's assist to go up by eight after multiple exchanges with BLC. The Vikings clawed their way back to bring the Rams lead within two and continued to tie the game up at 66 with 28.5 seconds left in regulation. For the second game in a row, NCU headed to overtime.

Immediately, Bethany Lutheran sank a three to put themselves up by three early on in the period. With three minutes left in overtime, the Rams found themselves down six points. Castro managed to finish a move inside the paint, but it was not enough for the blue and gold. Forced to foul, the North Central sent multiple Vikings players over a few possessions to the line, who made all of their free-throws to end the night with a final score of 68-76.

Key Performer(s)

• Improving each time he sees the court since his return just a couple of games prior, Jalen Dunlap led the team in scoring tonight with 16 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two blocks.
• Justin Castro had a monster of a night with a 12 point and 13 rebound double-double, alongside five assists.
• Cameron Thomas filled out the stat sheet with an 11 point 11 rebound double-double, two assists, three steals, and four blocks

Looking Ahead

After tonight's games, North Central University men's basketball will proceed into the UMAC playoffs as the third seed and play the University of Minnesota, Morris, on Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. Make sure you stay tuned to all of our communication channels to receive the latest news on UMAC post-season competition (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram). Also, tune into ncurams.com/watch to enjoy a free live video broadcast and statistics of the game.