ELMHURST, Ill. - In a game that spanned nearly four hours, the Elmhurst University men's basketball team dropped a double overtime thriller to North Park 90-93 Saturday evening inside R.A. Faganel Hall. The game took a nearly hour and a half hiatus after a thunderous dunk from Ocean Johnson shattered the Bluejay backboard.

A game that saw 18 lead changes and 15 ties, Elmhurst (15-8, 7-7 CCIW) was ultimatley unable to pull off a game-winner in regulation and through the two overtime periods, while the Vikings (18-5, 11-3 CCIW) pulled through in the end with clutch baskets to secure a key conference victory. 

Jonathan Zapinski had a monstrous night for the Bluejays, providing a career-high 25 points and 12 rebounds while also adding six assists and five blocks on the evening. Johnson, who provided the thunderous dunk, had 19 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double of his own, while John Ittounas tallied 15 points for Elmhurst.

For North Park, Kolden Vanlandingham provided a game-high 32 points on an efficient 10-for-16 shooting from the field, while Jordan Boyd provided a 21-point, 10 rebound double-double for the visitors.

A true back-and-forth affair throughout the game, the two teams played an even game for the entirety of the first half, changing leads with the Bluejays ultimartley leading by a pair at the halfway mark in regulation. In the second-half, the Bluejays were able to maintain a tight lead before the Vikings stormed back from a six-point deficit with less than five to go to knot the game at 72 with 49 seconds to go. After the Bluejays turned the ball over, North Park had a last-second shot attempt fall short, sending the game to its first overtime period.

In the first overtime, the two teams traded baskets to keep the game even before a Johnson jumper knotted the game at 80 with 39 seconds left. Elmhurst then forced a turnover to get the ball in their hands with a chance to close the game out, but a pair of missed jumpers sent the game into a second overtime period.

To start the second overtime period, Johnson managed to slip past the Vikings defense for a wide-open dunk which took down the rim and shattered the glass backboard, stunning the crowd and delaying the game. After a new backboard was brought in and set up, the two teams resumed play with the Vikings quickly knocking down a jumper to even the score. After a pair of Zapinski free-throws put the Bluejays up a pair with three minutes to go in the contest, a 5-0 run from the Vikings opened a three-point lead for the visitors.

Another pair of Zapinski points from the charity line brought the score within one, but the Vikings responded with two free-throws of their own. With the time running down, Elmhurst missed a pair three-point attempts and had to foul with three seconds remaining, and despite a quick basket from Zapinski and a last-second heave, the Bluejays were unable to keep the game going to allow North Park a victory. 

UP NEXT

Elmhurst enters the final week of the regular season looking to secure standing in the CCIW Tournament, hosting a pair of home games next week beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 15 against Augustana at 7:00 p.m. CT.

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