Millikin University kept pace through most of the early going, but North Central College put on a furious sprint early in the second half and left the Big Blue behind, charging away to a 74-37 men's basketball victory on Saturday at the Griswold Center.

The Cardinals (11-6, 5-1 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) allowed the lowest single-game point total by an opponent this season and held a foe under 40 points for the second time in seven games. North Central held the Big Blue scoreless for nearly 10 minutes after play resumed following halftime, scoring 26 in a row to seal the evening's outcome.

North Central led from wire to wire, opening the game with an 8-2 run over the first five minutes and leading by as many as nine points in the first period. The Big Blue (1-16, 0-6 CCIW) closed the gap to 23-21 with 2:16 left in the half, but another 8-2 surge carried the Cardinals to a 31-23 edge at the break.

Aaron Tiknis got the visitors off to a fast start in the second half, scoring eight points in the first four minutes. The Cardinals made 9 of 13 field-goal attempts in the first 10 minutes of the second period, all the while holding Millikin scoreless. North Central's defense harassed the Big Blue into 0 for 7 shooting and seven turnovers before Jeremy Jones broke the ice for Millikin with two free throws with 10:03 to play. 

The Cardinals continued to stretch their lead until the final buzzer, as North Central's reserves scored the final six points of the contest. The guests shot 51.0 percent (25-49) from the floor and scored 24 points on Millikin turnovers in posting the largest margin of victory in any CCIW game thus far this season.

Tiknis finished with a game-high 15 points, while Landon Gamble totaled 12 andDerek Raridon scored 11. Ryan Broyles grabbed a team-best seven rebounds andKevin Gillespie handed out four assists. 

Jones put up nine points off the bench to pace Millikin, which lost for the 26th straight time in conference play. The Big Blue were limited to 31.1 percent shooting (14-45) from the floor, making just 4 of 22 shots (18.2 percent) in the second half.

North Central (11-6, 5-1) hosts North Park University (5-12, 1-5) on Tuesday. TIpoff at Gregory Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.