ELMHURST, Ill. - The Elmhurst University men's basketball team fell to North Park, 72-61, Wednesday evening inside R.A. Faganel Hall.

The loss drops the Jays to 7-10 on the season, and 3-5 in CCIW play, while NPU improves to 12-5 and stays in a tie atop the conference with a 7-1 record.

The Bluejays kept pace with the high-powered Vikings throughout the first half, trailing by just three at halftime and tying the game out of the break and quickly taking a lead, but 16 points off of 16 Bluejay turnovers (compared to just six from the visitors) proved to be the difference.

Dominic Trelenberg had a team-leading 14 points on the evening, while Sebastian Blachut scored 13, marking his 9th-straight game eclipsing double figures. Vinnie Adjahoungbeta provided nine points and six rebounds for the home team, while Jaiden Malichi provided nine and seven for Elmhurst.

In the opening half of the game, both teams traded baskets and stood within one possesion for the first seven minutes of action. A quick sequence of a Tagen Pearson trey, Malichi free throw, and Trelenberg jumper gave EU a 15-13 lead with 11:08 to go.

A 17-6 run opened a nine point lead for the Visitors with 4:09 left, but Elmhurst would continue to fight with baskets from Blachut and Adjahoungbeta. An Aidyn Boone layup with 43 seconds to go moved the score to 31-34 in favor of the Vikings, where it would stand after a defensive stand and a missed shot to end the half.

Blachut would score EU's first five points out of halftime to give the Jays a narrow lead, but the Vikings would respond quickly and efficiently, scoring a 23-4 run across 6:50 of game time to open a 40-57 lead. From there, the Bluejays would only get within 11 of the visitors, as the conference-leading Vikings would cruise the rest of the way to a 72-61 win.

UP NEXT 

Elmhurst hits the road for the second edition of the Battle of the Birds in January, taking on North Central College in Naperville this Saturday, Jan. 25 at 4:15pm

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