HOLLAND, Mich. – North Park men's basketball put the heat on Hope College on Saturday afternoon, dropping a narrow 80-73 game on the road. Hope was just outside of the D3Hoops.com National Top 25 poll, receiving 51 votes.
The Dutchmen were running away with the game early, at one point leading by 20 points at 37-17 with five minutes left in the first half.
North Park broke that lead down with a plethora of free throws, a handful of layups, and a big three pointer by Kolden Vanlandingham. In total, the Vikings went on a 21-4 run, closing the gap to a one possession game, 41-38.
Before halftime, the Dutchmen added an and-one layup, but the Vikings stayed within striking distance, 44-38. Vanlandingham had 17 points in the half, including three 3-pointers in a row during a 1:20 stretch.
Vanlandingham bolstered the Vikings' offense early on in the second half as well, notching the first points with two free throws and a layup. Next, a Shamar Pumphrey jumper and layups by Vanlandingham and Marquise Jackson gave the Vikings their first lead of the game, 48-47.
The two teams traded leads for 12 minutes of the half, but Hope took a lead with 6:59 left and never looked back.
FINAL: Hope 80, North Park 73
Quick Hits:
- Career high 23 points for Vanlandingham
- 8-for-8 from free throw line, three 3 pointers
- Pumphrey and Jackson with Viking career high point totals of 17 and 14, respectively
- Vikings force 15 steals, including three each for Jalen Boyd and Jordan Boyd
- NPU totals 32 points off of turnovers
What's Next?
North Park (2-1) heads to Fond du Lac, Wis. On Tuesday, November 22 for a non-conference game against Marian University. Tipoff is set for 7:00 PM.
