The North Central College men's basketball team kept itself in contention for a spot in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament on Wednesday, as superior shooting and a series of clutch second-half plays negated a rash of turnovers in the Cardinals' 64-60 victory over Millikin University at the Griswold Center.

North Central (11-10, 4-6 CCIW) shot 57.5 percent (23-40) from the floor to offset 19 turnovers, 13 of which came in the first half. With four games to play, the Cardinals are 1 1/2 games out of the fourth and final spot in the CCIW Tournament, which will be played Feb. 28-Mar. 1.

North Central enjoyed a fast start on the offensive end, getting three-point plays from Vince Kmiec and Pat Rourke and owning an 8-2 advantage after three minutes of play. The Cardinals then endured a drought of more than six minutes, going 0 for 5 from the field with four turnovers, as Millikin bounced back to knot the score at 8-8 with 12:02 on the first-half clock. 

Landon Gamble got the Cardinals back on track with two straight inside baskets, and the visitors led by as many as five points before entering halftime with a 26-23 advantage. North Central harassed the BIg Blue into 6 for 22 shooting with 11 turnovers, but Millikin made 10 of 11 free throws to keep pace.

Both teams executed well on the offensive end to start the second half, as North Central made five of its first seven shots while Millikin netted 4 of 6. The Cardinals owned a 39-33 lead after Gamble put up eight of his team's first 13 points of the period, but Millikin bounced back with a 10-2 run to take the lead for the only time at 43-41 with 11:01 to play.

Brandon Williams nudged North Central back in front with an 18-foot jumper from the top of the key. A free throw from Millikin's Brennan Coltrane tied the game at 44-44, but Tyler Sutton connected on a three-pointer from the right wing which gave the Cardinals a 47-44 and wound up putting the guests in front for good.

Owning a 54-50 lead, the Cardinals got a putback and a layup off a pass from Rourke to take their largest lead of the night at 58-50 with 2:54 to play. The Big Blue's Deavis Johnson scored twice in the lane to get the hosts back into striking distance, but North Central made 6 of 8 free throws in the final 1:04, including a 5 for 6 effort in the final 18 seconds, to seal the Cardinals' first road win in CCIW play this season.

Kmiec led North Central with 18 points, while Gamble scored 15 and Rourke and Burchett each scored 10. Rourke's point total was a season high and Bruchett also added a season-best 13 rebounds. 

Millikin (7-13, 1-8) was led by Coltrane's 13 points in 21 minutes off the bench, while Johnson scored 11 points and Tives Gardner added 10.

The Cardinals travel to face North Park University (4-16, 1-8) on Saturday. Tipoff at North Park Gymnasium is set for 7 p.m.