The Carthage College men's basketball team (6-4, 0-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) came back from a 20-point second-half deficit to win a thrilling, 76-73 game, in overtime, over North Central University (Minn., 4-6), on Monday, Dec. 21 at the Puerto Rico Division III Classic.
The Red Men opened tournament play on Sunday, Dec. 20 with a 61-32 win over York College (N.Y.. 2-9), with both games being played at the Rubén Rodriguez Coliseum in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
North Central opened up an 11-point lead midway thru the first half, 21-10, at 9:16. The Rams upped their margin to 15 point, 32-17, at 1:47 on a three-pointer by Josh High. North Central led by 12 at halftime, 32-20.
The Red Men fell behind by 20 points, 46-26, at 13:38 second half, and then the comeback got underway. A 10-point run cut the lead to 10, 46-36, at 11:17. A 17-9 run from that point whittled the lead to two, 55-53, at 3:58. Carthage tied the game, 57-57, at 1:33. A three-pointer by North Central's Isaiah Rustad with 56 seconds to play in regulation gave the Rams a two-point lead, 61-59, but a long three-pointer by Tony Pierce Jr. with 36 seconds on the clock put Carthage up by one, 62-61. The Rams' Joel Cline had a chance to win the game with two free throws at the two-second mark, but he missed the first and made the second to send the game into overtime tied at 62 each.
The Rams had a pair of four-point leads in overtime, the last at 69-65 with 2:54 left. The Red Men took a four-point lead, 73-69, at 1:36 in overtime on a three-pointer by Brad Kruse. A layup by North Central's Cody Martin with 45 seconds remaining tied the contest at 73-73. Carthage's Pierce connected on the second-of-two free throws with 27 seconds left to put the Red Men up to stay, 74-73, and a pair of free throws by Jordon Kedrowski with 10 seconds to play sealed the victory at 76-73.
Carthage shot only 35 percent (25-71), including just eight-of-33 from three-point range, while North Central shot 41 percent (25-61), including eight-of-21 three-pointers. The Red Men out-rebounded the Rams, 51-38, and both teams turned the ball over 21 times.
Three Carthage players scored in double figures, with Jordon Kedrowski (Fr., Bolingbrook Ill./Downers Grove-North) leading the way with 23 points on seven-of-17 field goals, including just two-of-10 threes. Kedrowski converted seven-of-eight free throws, pulled down seven rebounds and dished out six assists. Transfer Tony Pierce Jr. (Sr., Evanston, Ill./Skokie-Niles West), in just his second game with the Red Men, scored 21 points on six-of-13 from the floor, including three-of-six from three-point range, along with six-of-eight free throws and seven rebounds. Mike Stevenson (Jr., Burlington, Wis./Wilmot-Union) came off the bench to add 14 points and seven boards. Isaiah Rustad led North Central with 21 points and nine rebounds, with both Josh High and Joel Cline chipping in 15 points.
"This one was probably one of the better Christmas presents I'm going to get," said Carthage coach Bosko Djurickovic. "We couldn't have played worse early in the game, and that might have been a factor of the heat down here. We put ourselves in a hole, but give our guys credit for reaching a little deep in the second half. You look at our numbers tonight, and you might forget what Brad Kruse does for us. He is the blood and guts of this basketball team. He makes plays that other people don't attempt. The number that sticks out is 21 turnovers. Other than Grinnell College a few years ago, I don't remember ever turning the ball over 20 times. I'm looking at point guards with 12 turnovers—that just can't happen. Tony Pierce plays with ridiculous confidence, and he can shoot the deep three. He and Jordan Kedrowski have separated themselves as our leading offensive players. Having said that, we made some decisions down the stretch that you can only shake your head at."
Carthage left for Puerto Rico on Friday and returns next Wednesday, Dec. 23. The following Wednesday, Dec. 30, the Red Men close out their non-conference schedule with a 7 p.m. game against No. 7 Benedictine University (Ill., 10-0) at the Dan & Ada Rice Center in Lisle, Ill. "Benedictine has had a terrific 10-game start to their season," said Djurickovic. "This might be the best team they've ever had. They're very experienced, very large, and they've already played three CCIW teams. It's going to be a heck of a challenge."
The Eagles collected their fourth win over a CCIW-opponent this season on Dec. 22 with a 75-73 decision over North Central College in Naperville, Ill.