EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- The Vikings men's basketball team made a short turnaround for another long bus trip, heading to Edwardsville, Illinois to matchup with the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Cougars in North Park's second exhibition against Division I talent. The Vikings showed well in the first 20 minutes before SIUE took hold in the second half, to beat North Park, 92-67.
Kolden Vanlandingham paced the Vikings' scoring the first half, racking up 12 of NPU's 34 points. The full court pressure that the Vikings showed in their game against Lawrence was toned down in the first half of this game, and they also threw in some zone looks to slow down the Cougars.
The defense showed well in the first half, as the Cougars only shot 17% from 3-point territory and less than 50% from the field in total. North Park's quality first half even showcased a 19-13 lead with 12 minutes left, following a fastbreak three from Davante Robinson and layup by Taijon Barry. A 14-2 run for the Cougars would slow the Vikings down but, going into the locker room, the Vikings trailed by just four points, 38-34.
North Park brought the full court pressure on defense to give the Cougars a different look to start the second half. SIUE's offense came out hot, however, and their defense took advantage of North Park's turnovers to get some easy buckets. They continued to extend their lead throughout the second half as the Vikings struggled to stop the bleeding and find a solid offensive rhythm against the Division I foe. Vanlandingham was held scoreless in the second half, but junior guard Kyren Gardner added 8 points off the bench, junior center Phil Holmes Jr. ended with 12 points, and junior TJ Gardner ended with 9 points in the eventual 92-67 defeat.
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What's Next?
The Vikings (1-0) will host their first home game this Sunday, November 12, against Marian University before traveling to the Illinois College Tournament next weekend. Tipoff in Chicago on Sunday is set for 2:00 PM.
