ROCK ISLAND, Ill. -- The North Park men's basketball team finalized one of the best regular seasons in three decades with a 73-65 win over the Augustana Vikings. With it, North Park ends the year with a 13-3 record in conference play to secure the #2 seed for the upcoming CCIW playoffs, trailing only the 14-2 Wheaton Thunder.
Augustana kicked off tonight's scoring with a three-pointer from Tyler Knuth, but the remainder of the first half belonged to Chicago's Vikings. North Park's Quillin Dixon responded immediately with a three of his own, and NPU would not find themselves trailing again for the rest of the period. The Vikings' lead reached 11 at one point. However, Augie managed to pull back and tie the game on multiple occasions as halftime drew near, working to a score of 34-34 with a minute left in the half. A three-pointer from Kolden Vanlandingham and free throw from Adam Bulwa gave NPU the slight edge heading into the break with the score at 38-36.
It was Augustana again striking first in the second half, and they would carry that momentum this time around to earn their first lead since the game's opening basket. Back-to-back buckets from Augustana's Colton Gillingham and Evan Ambrose sent the score to 45-48 in Augie's favor. NPU quickly countered with an 11-0 run, spearheaded by three-pointers from Dixon and Jalen Boyd, to take back command of the game at 56-48. That scoring margin of eight points shifted throughout the remaining eleven minutes—shrinking to as low as five and extending to as high as thirteen—but eight points ultimately proved to be the difference come the final buzzer.
North Park's Quillin Dixon had a standout night to close the season, pouring in a season-high 19 points to lead the Vikings. He shot a perfect 3-for-3 from distance with a 10-11 mark from the free throw stripe. The only other NPU scorer in double figures was Jalen Boyd, adding 15 points with 5 rebounds. Boyd, Dixon, and Marquise Jackson led the team defensively with 4 steals each on a night where North Park forced 23 turnovers, and Jordan Boyd pitched in with 3 blocks. Meanwhile, Shamar Pumphrey did a bit of everything, collecting 8 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.
Regular Season Notes:
North Park's 20 wins are the most since 1987 and its 13 CCIW wins are the most since 1991. The Vikings mark their highest finish since the 2016-17 team shared a league title with Carthage and Augustana.
What's Next?
The Vikings advance to the CCIW playoffs with the #2 seed, receiving a bye for the first round. They will take on the higher-seeded team of the two quarterfinal victors, with the semifinals set for February 24th at Wheaton's King Arena.