NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The Elmhurst University men's basketball team was outscored 50-25 in the second half to drop a 79-70 road contest at North Central College.
 
Elmhurst (12-5/4-4 CCIW) scored the first bucket of the contest and led for the entire first half. The Bluejays jumped out to a 25-6 lead seven minutes into the contest. North Central (11-5/6-2 CCIW) cut the deficit down to 12 on multiple occasions, but Elmhurst pushed its lead back up to 16, carrying a 45-29 lead at the half.
 
The Bluejays shot 53.1 percent in the opening half and knocked down 7-of-14 3-point attempts in the first 20 minutes of action.
 
The Bluejays held a 62-47 lead midway through the second half before North Central took control. Elmhurst managed just eight points over the final 10 minutes, shooting just 3-of-18 in that stretch. The Bluejays still held a 66-57 lead with seven minutes remaining, but North Central ripped off a 14-0 over a 2:15 span to take a five-point lead. The Cardinals would not relinquish the lead for the rest of the way, pulling away for nine-point win.
 
Elmhurst shot only 10-of-30 in the second half and missed all 12 of its 3-point attempts. The Cardinals hit 20-of-31 shots in the second half and knocked down six 3-pointers. The Bluejays finished the game shooting 43.5 percent (27-of-62) from the field while the Cardinals finished at 49.2 percent (31-of-63).
 
Four Bluejays reached double figures in scoring. Lavon Thomas came off the bench to score a game-high 15 points. Jake Rhode added 12 points while Dominic Genco scored 11. Wesley Hooker added 10 points and seven rebounds while Jay Militello totaled eight points and nine boards.
 
Matt Helwig led North Central's comeback, finishing with 21 points and nine rebounds. Shea Cupples added 17 points and six rebounds while Ethan Helwig totaled 16 points and four assists. Blaise Meredith finished with 11 points and seven rebounds.
 
Elmhurst hosts Illinois Wesleyan University on Wednesday, January 26.