Box Score

MINNEAPOLS – The Northwestern College men's basketball team earned sole possession of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) top spot Tuesday night with a 94-60 victory over North Central University, thanks in part to a career night by Wade Chitwood (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell). Chitwood totaled 36 points, including 34 in the first half alone, en route to a new career high.

The Eagles scored early and often as Chitwood put the visitors on the board with back to back three-pointers to kick-start the contest. North Central responded and began to rally in front of its home crowd, bringing the game to 6-10 with 16:51 left in the first half. Chitwood struck again, posting NWC's next five points as the team began a 12-0 run to increase its lead to 22-6.

Amidst another scoring run from Northwestern, the Rams cut into the margin and brought the game within 14 points multiple times around the half mid-point. NWC's wheels kept rolling with 6:17 left, however, and the squad would utilize a 22-6 push to capitalize on an already momentous first half. A .667 field goal mark in the first twenty minutes proved to aid the Eagles to a 65-29 upper hand at intermission.
 
Chitwood's dominant first half feature 12-13 shooting from the senior, including a blistering 8-9 outcome from beyond the arc. In the first twenty minutes alone, Chitwood bested his previous career high 31 points, a total posted on November 28.
 
The second period saw the Purple and Gold pick up where it left off, as the duo of Chitwood and Matt Watnemo (Moorhead, Minnesota/Moorhead High School) combined to give the visitors on the scoreboard their largest lead of the game, a 39-point margin, less than a minute into the half. The remainder of the matchup featured consistent play on each end of the floor as the teams posted a nearly even field-goal percentage while North Central outscored Northwestern 31-29 in the second twenty minutes.
 
NWC continued to hold on to game security and maintained at least a 32-point advantage throughout the remainder of the contest. A Thomas Shephard (Crystal, N.D./Valley-Edinburg) triple gave the Eagles a 90-53 lead with 3:37, and the team finished the game with a pair of makes in the lane from both Shephard and Blake Van Maanen (Oshkosh, Wis./Valley Christian). As the whistle blew, Northwestern walked off the hardwood with a 94-60 victory.

Chitwood concluded his career night with 36 points and a .764 shooting percentage, including going 8-10 from triple range. NWC was also aided by Janson and Watnemo, who each notched double-scoring in the contest between the two top UMAC teams.
 
After Tuesday's victory, Northwestern (14-5, 7-1 UMAC) will have a quick few days to prepare for two more weekend conference matchups. The Eagles will play host to Crown College on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. and will return to the Ericksen Center on Saturday for a 5 p.m. game versus the University of Minnesota Morris.