The North Central College men's basketball team earned a prosperous living in the free-throw lane in Saturday's College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) opener, overpowering the North Park University Vikings in an 88-71 victory at the North Park Gym.

The Cardinals (3-2, 1-0 CCIW) shot a season-high 58.6 percent (34 of 58) from the floor, including a 62.1 percent clip (18 of 29) in the second half and owned a 50-18 advantage in points scored in the paint Saturday, leading for all but 14 seconds of the 40-minute contest.

After surrendering the game's opening basket, North Central scored eight of the next 10 points and never trailed again. The Vikings tied the score at 19-19 following Scott Olsen's three-pointer with 10:13 on the first-half clock, but the Cardinals bounced back with a three-pointer by Matt Cappelletti and a three-point play by Connor Raridon on their next two possessions to stay in front. North Park (1-4, 0-1) narrowed the gap to one point three more times in the first half, the last of which came at 35-34, before North Central closed the half with four points from Raridon and a three-pointer by Aiden Chang to take a 42-36 advantage into halftime.

The Cardinals opened the second half with a 7-2 run, capped off by a fast-break layup from Erwin Henry, to take a 49-38 lead. North Park closed the gap to four points at 63-59 following two three-pointers and a pair of free throws by Collin Lake, but North Central responded by putting the game away with a 15-2 surge which included seven points from Raridon and six from Mike Pollack. The visitors led by at least 13 points for the final 6:09 of the game.

Raridon finished with 26 points on 9 of 13 shooting while also contributing six rebounds and a game-high seven assists. Alex Sorenson put up 22 points and tied a career high with 15 rebounds, while Henry totaled 18 points and five assists. Lake led all scorers with 28 points for North Park.

The Cardinals travel to face No. 2-ranked Augustana College on Wednesday. Tipoff at the Carver Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.