ROCK ISLAND, Ill. -- In a Vikings versus Vikings matchup, the North Park men's basketball team traveled to the Carver Center to take on Augustana College in a game where both teams were looking to get into a rhythm after having slow starts to the season. North Park earned the victory, 75-55. The minuscule 55 points given up by NPU are the fewest allowed against a CCIW opponent since the Vikings beat North Central, 65-53, during the 2001-02 season.

North Park got out to an early 11-0 lead, attacking the middle of Augustana's zone that looked like it was shifting between a 2-3 and a 3-2. Augustana's gameplan was to keep North Park out of the paint and hope for lower shooting percentages from depth.

Junior center Phil Holmes Jr. had a strong first half, making his presence known in the paint versus a smaller Augustana team, scoring all six of his first half points in the paint.  From the field, North Park shot 54% and led Augustana in rebounds, 17-12.  Without taking a free throw in the first half, North Park knocked down 3-of-10 threes and caused 8 turnovers, scoring 6 points off those turnovers.  Senior guard Shamar Pumphrey also had an efficient first half, pitching in 7 points and a couple rebounds while shooting 3-5 from the field and 1-1 from three.  North Park went into halftime up 33-21. 

North Park kept things rolling coming out of halftime, continuing to build their lead and extending it to as much as 15 within the first few minutes of the second half.  North Park was finding the easy buckets through fastbreak points off turnovers and staying patient against the zone and utilizing a high-low zone offense.  Phil Holmes, Jr. dished a game-high 5 assists by catching the ball in the mid to high post and finding his shooters and baseline guys when the defense collapsed on him.   

North Park shot 48% from the field, scored 70 points for the first time in six games, shot 12-14 from the free-throw line, and had 15 assists which was 6 more than Augustana.  These are great marks to hit and to build off as North Park gets back in the win column and takes a break from league play.  

There were several strong performances tonight, most notably freshman forward Trevon Roots' 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 blocks that complimented his fellow big-man Phil Holmes Jr.'s 14 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 blocks. Roots established new career marks in just about every category tonight. Shamar Pumphrey's 13 points with senior Trey Brooks' and freshman forward DJ Wallace's combined 16 points provided a nice boost as well. 

What's Next? 

The Vikings (3-6, 1-3) have two home games after an upcoming week's rest, taking on Dominican University (Dec. 18) and Hope College (Dec. 21) before heading down to Nashville.

Top Performers 

Phil Holmes Jr. – 14 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST, 2 BLK, 6-10 FG 

Trevon Roots – 14 PTS, 5 REB, 2 BLK, 6-8 FG 

Shamar Pumphrey – 13 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL 

Trey Brooks – 8 PTS, 2 REB, 1 BLK 

DJ Wallace – 8 PTS, 5 REB, 2 AST, 3-4 FG, 2-2 FT