Just one day removed from a double-overtime triumph, the North Central College men's basketball team left no room for drama in its second game in the Cruzin Classic on Wednesday, racing to a huge early lead and defeating Wheaton College (Massachusetts), 89-77, at the Broward County Convention Center.

The Cardinals (8-3) piled up a 30-point lead in the first 12 minutes of play and led comfortably for most of the afternoon, putting six players in double figures in the scoring column and shooting 53.7 percent from the floor (29 of 54), including a season-best 10 of 19 effort (52.6 percent) from three-point range. North Central also saw a new career record set for the program, as Alex Sorenson blocked three shots to push his career total to 75 and top the previous record of 74 set by Anthony Simmons '07.

In the first six minutes of play, the Cardinals made 9 of 11 shots from the field, including a trio of three-pointers from Erwin Henry, to spot themselves a 23-4 advantage. Owning a 29-11 lead, North Central got a three from Matt Cappelletti to spark a 12-0 run and extend the lead to 41-11, and a triple by Nick Chambers with 6:32 on the clock gave the Cardinals their largest lead at 44-13.

After carrying a 54-35 edge into halftime, North Central led by double figures until Wheaton's Ryan Fogarty knocked down a three to narrow the gap to 76-67 with 4:31 to play. The Lyons (5-6) got as close as six points on David Carbonello's inside basket with 1:03 left, but the Cardinals made 6 of 8 free throws in the final minute, Chang sinking 4 of 6, to close out the contest.

Chang led all scorers with a career-high 26 points, making 7 of 10 shots from the floor and 9 of 11 at the free-throw line. Henry scored 17 points, Cappelletti totaled 12, and Sorenson, Chambers and Jagger Anderson each scored 10. Sorenson and Cappelletti shared the team lead with seven rebounds each, while Anderson handed out seven assists. 

Fogarty was Wheaton's leading scorer with 15 points. Quinton Dale added 14 and Carbonello put up 10.

The Cardinals are idle until Thursday, Dec. 29, when they travel to face the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Tipoff at Quandt Fieldhouse is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.