KENOSHA — Carthage College traded baskets early before the Firebirds leaned on balanced scoring from AJ Johnson, Ryan Johnson and Riley Brooks to carry a 35-29 advantage into halftime. The second half opened with a defensive tone before Carthage created separation through timely three-pointers and finishes at the rim to establish a double-digit lead. AJ Johnson connected repeatedly from long range as the Firebirds continued to respond to each push and stretch the margin. Carthage closed out a 77-59 victory behind AJ Johnson's 22 points, Ryan Johnson's 17 and Riley Brooks' 14.

• Final Score: Carthage 77 - Wheaton (Ill.) 59
• Location: Tarble Arena – Kenosha, Wis.
• Records: Carthage 5-4 (2-1 CCIW), Wheaton (Ill.) 6-4 (1-2 CCIW)

• Carthage fought back to put up back-to-back layups of their own from AJ Johnson to start the contest.
• The scoring for the Firebirds did not stop as Riley Brooks and Chris Schlesinger added a three-pointer and a jumper of their own. 
• Aj Williams and Jabe Haith both sank threes of their own to continue to extend the lead to 11. 
• The Thunder put a pause on Carthage's lead to cut the lead to seven; however, Carthage quickly answered to put themselves back up by nine. 
• The visitors once again cut the Firebirds' lead to seven off a driving layup. 
• The last three minutes of the half were a defensive battle as Carthage entered halftime up 35-29.
• The defensive battle carried into the second half as Brooks broke through with a three-pointer from down low. 
• AJ Johnson followed that with a pull-up jumper to extend the lead to 12. 
• The home team continued to extend their lead with back-to-back three pointers from AJ Johnson, making the score 56-39. 
• Griffin Daun got into the mix with a jumper at the 8:29 mark. Wheaton answered back after a timeout with a layup fto cut down on the Carthage lead. However, Brooks answered right back with another three. 
• Ryan Johnson sank a layup of his own to kick off his second-half scoring. 
• AJ Johnson closed the night with a pair of contested three-pointers, pushing the Firebirds' lead to twenty in the final minute.

• AJ Johnson led the Firebirds with 22 points, followed by his brother Ryan Johnson, who added 17 points and 11 rebounds. 
• Riley Brooks chipped in with 14 points while Griffin Daun grabbed six rebounds. 

• Carthage faces Olivet on Friday, December 19, at 1 p.m.