Chicago, Il., -- The Vikings (8-3, 2-1) played host to local foe Concordia University (4-6, 3-1) in their first game in nine days, looking to shake off the holiday break rust.

That rust was apparent for both teams early on with neither team scoring a field goal until four minutes into the game.  From there North Park clicked offensively for a majority of the half, getting out to a 19-point lead behind Kolden Vanlandingham's 12 points and forcing the Cougars into 11 first half turnovers.  Julian Campbell and Jakhi Gray had 9 points apiece as well, with Gray knocking down three of his four 3-point shots.  Gray's three 3-point makes ties a career high in made threes in a game.  The Cougars started the game shaky, not being able to get into any sort of rhythm offensively or defensively.  However, their effort never wavered, and they were able to cut the Viking lead from 19 to 8 before half.  Leading the way was Darrian Williams with nine, finding his spots in the mid-range area and knocking down a three, while big man Aaron Brown pitched in 7 points.  North Park went into halftime up 46-38.

Concordia came out of the break a different team, clawing back with gritty defense and getting to the line.  AJ Willard was the spark for the Cougars, sending in three 3-point baskets in the second half to keep the Cougars close.  Willard ended with 13 points along with Brown's 13, and Darrian Williams slowed a little bit in the second half ending with 16 points, but he was getting his teammates involved with a game-high 7 assists.

Vanlandingham kept the offense steady for the Vikings down the stretch, finishing with 21 points and a game high 3 steals, however Vuckovic, after only a 2-point first half, exploded for 16 second half points as he got to the line and finished 6-12 from the field.  Campbell finished with a strong 16 points and 8 rebounds as well, with a game-high 3 blocks acting as a deterrent to the Cougars entering the paint.  Senior guard William Bates had a quiet 13 points on 5-6 shooting, with 2 rebounds, 2 assist, and 2 steals, making his presence on the court was all the difference finishing with the highest plus/minus of any player with 22. 

North Park would end up extending their lead back to double digits after the Cougars were able to get within four points around midway through the half.  The Vikings walked away with a 98-83 victory over a young Concordia team, getting their feet back under them before their conference game on Saturday, January 3^rd against North Central College to start off the new year. 

Tip off is at 4:15pm in Naperville, Illinois this Saturday, January 3^rd.