Chicago, Il., -- North Park Men's Basketball (11-9, 4-7) faced a tough setback on Saturday evening, falling 85-70 to the Carthage College Firebirds (13-6. 7-3) at Carlson Gymnasium. Despite the Vikings' hot start, they were unable to overcome a significant rebounding disadvantage and a lights-out shooting performance from Carthage, as they shot 50% from the field overall.  North Park came out with high energy in the opening minutes, jumping to a 20-11 following an authoritative fast-break dunk by William Bates. However, Carthage responded with a lights out perimeter attack, led by AJ Johnson, to close the half on a major run and take a 39-29 lead into the locker room.

The Vikings were exceptional from the charity stripe—connecting on 17-19 (89.5%)—they struggled to find their rhythm from the field, shooting just 34.8% over the course of the game. North Park excelled in transition, outscoring the Firebirds 28-17 in fast break points, but Carthage's 48-36 rebounding advantage proved to be a decisive factor in the contest.  Mike Vuckvic played all 40 minutes for the Vikings and led the team in scoring with 22 points, adding 5 rebounds and 4 assists in the process. Lazario Cornish and Kolden Vanlandingham followed with 13 points apiece, with Marquis Vance and William Bates both had 8 points each.  North Park struggled to find a spark off the bench as well as creating turnovers against a sound Carthage team.

Carthage was powered by a game-high 25 points from AJ Johnson, who connected on six three-pointers and grabbed 8 rebounds; while Ryan Johnson added 18 points and facilitated the offense with a game-high 5 assists.  Additionally, Antuan Nesbitt chipped in 11 points, 7 rebounds, a block, and a steal, and Chris Schlesinger finished with 10 points and 3 blocks.

The Vikings will look to regroup as they continue their late-season push through a highly competitive CCIW schedule.  The Vikings will travel down to Millikin University on Wednesday, February 4th, where tip off is set for 7pm.