NAPERVILLE – The Carthage College men's basketball team added a hard-fought victory over North Central (Ill.) 73-71 Wednesday night. 

• Final Score: Carthage 73 - North Central (Ill.) 71
• Location: Naperville, Illinois - Gregory Arena
• Records: Carthage 17-5 (11-2 CCIW), North Central (Ill.) 13-10 (6-8 CCIW)

• North Central (Ill.) opened the game with an 8-0 run, prompting an early Carthage timeout.
• The Firebirds fought back, cutting the deficit to four on a layup by Griffin Daun.
• A free throw from Ryan Johnson later brought Carthage within three at 26-23 with 3:01 remaining in the half.
• Consecutive layups from Ryan Johnson and Colton Sigel put the Firebirds ahead 30-29.
• Johnson knocked down a jumper with five seconds left, but the Cardinals raced the length of the court to beat the buzzer, taking a 34-32 lead into halftime.
• North Central (Ill.) extended its lead to seven before Carthage rallied, tying the game at 47 on a free throw by Ryan Johnson.
• The Cardinals regained a five-point advantage, but a quick five-point surge from Daun evened the score at 59.
• Daun added a free throw to push Carthage ahead 65-59 with under five minutes to play, though North Central (Ill.) responded with a three-pointer and a jumper to take a 67-65 lead.
• The Firebirds answered as Ryan Johnson's layup and ensuing free throw put them back in front with 1:27 remaining.
• The Cardinals trimmed the gap to one with seven seconds left, but a Ryan Johnson free throw made it 73-71 with three seconds to go.
• Carthage's defense held strong in the final moments, forcing an off-balance shot that missed the mark to secure the victory.

• Ryan Johnson led Carthage with 22 points and nine rebounds, finishing just one board shy of a double-double.
• AJ Johnson contributed 14 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
• Griffin Daun added 13 points and seven rebounds, while AJ Williams chipped in 11 points.

"We found a way tonight! North Central has been playing excellent the last week with wins vs Illinois Wesleyan and North Park, so we knew it was going to be a typical CCIW road game. I don't think today was one of our best offensive efforts, but we really locked in defensively in the second half and got the tough road win! 

Saturday at Tarble is going to be another game like this. Wheaton has won three straight and playing their best basketball of the season. It will be a bittersweet day as we honor our senior class that has meant so much to this program these past 4 years. Looking forward to honoring Ryan Grantham, Dane Hamilton, AJ Johnson, Tanner Lamb, Colton Sigel, and KJ Williams."

• Carthage returns home for Senior Day on Saturday, February 15 at 4:15 p.m.