Photos courtesy of Dr. Jeff Nelson, North Park University

CHICAGO, IL - Opening up their first game of 2018 the North Park University Vikings resumed play against CCIW opponent Millikin University.

North Park had a slow start after a few layups and short jumper gave the Big Blue a 6-0 lead.

Following a timeout, the Vikings knocked down consecutive three-pointers; two from Colin Lake and one from Matt Szuba. Quickly, North Park had a 15-9 lead.
Szuba added to this run when he knocked down an open three-pointer from the top-right side of the arc and stole a pass for a breakaway layup. All of a sudden, North Park had a double-digit lead.

Junior Billy Kirby followed suit and gave the Vikings their largest lead of the game when he converted on an and-one layup to make it 41-28. Entering the second half, the Vikings had the wind at their back.

Keeping that spark alive early in the second half, Billy Kirby drained a three to recapture a double-digit lead.

Millikin was able to chip away at the Vikings' lead when they knocked down two free throws following a shooting foul to make it a 55-47 North Park lead.

With the advantage of a double bonus, North Park gave the Big Blue many chances at the charity stripe. This ultimately kept them within grasp of the Vikings, as a 60-55 lead made it a two-shot game.

The Big Blue continued to stay on the heels of the Vikings as a layup by Elijah Henry brought Big Blue within 4. However, Millikin fell into foul trouble of their own and the Vikings knocked down 4 consecutive free throws to spring ahead by 8.

No matter what lead NPU seemed to attain, the Big Blue fought back. With just under 40 seconds to play, North Park held a 70-67 lead. A steal from Michael Charles II and a slam dunk by Elijah Henry forced a one point game.

8 seconds remained on the clock as the Big Blue looked to inbound the ball. Fortunately, stellar defense by the Vikings prevailed and they were able to force a missed shot as the clock expired.

With this win, the Vikings improve their record to 4-7 and 1-2 in conference. The men return to action this weekend where they will make the short drive to play Wheaton College on Saturday afternoon.

KEYS TO THE W

• Billy Kirby was 6-11 from the field with 19 points and 4 assists
• North Park shot 80% (16-20) from the free throw line
• Matt Szuba pulled down 10 rebounds and added 10 points
• Jack Gurvey had a season-best 12 points, as he was 3-5 beyond the arc
• Colin Lake grabbed a season-best 5 rebounds and added 18 points

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Vikings will travel to take on a tough Wheaton College team (9-3, 3-1) who are currently sitting in second place of the conference standings. The Wheaton Thunder enter the contest with a three game winning streak, most recently beating CCIW opponent Carroll University 97-92.