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Vikings Edge Illinois Wesleyan
By Craig Pinley
CHICAGO, IL (January 22, 2004) - North Park University raised its overall record
to 6-9 as Lamar Townsend converted a three-point play with 1.4 seconds left
to help the Vikings edge Illinois Wesleyan University 77-74 Wednesday
night.
Townsend had 15 points, his sixth straight game with double digit scoring,
as North Park moved to 1-3 in College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin
play and ended a four-game losing streak. Illinois Wesleyan is now 9-6, 3-2
in conference.
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Brett Mathisen led the Vikings with his college high of 21 points. Javier
Sanchez had eight rebounds and tied his season high with 16 points and Cal
Ecker produced 10 points and five assists to help the home team offset 22
points from Keelan Amelianovich.
With the game tied and 4.1 seconds remaining, the Vikings inbounded the
ball past half court near the North Park student section. Townsend received
the inbound pass near the top of the key and dribbled toward the basket
before faking a Titan player in the air and releasing a double pump bank
shot that fell through the net.
After a foul was called on Titan guard Jim Lehan, Townsend made an
additional foul shot for the game's final point. Illinois Wesleyan's
inbound pass from its own end of the court was recovered by North Park as
the buzzer sounded.
"He did exactly what we asked for," said North Park coach Rees Johnson on
Townsend's late game heroics. "We set the play up for Lamar because he has
a good vertical leap and can rise over players. We told him to drive to the
middle of the floor and get them up in the air and try to draw a foul. When
he made the shot it was icing on the cake."
Illinois Wesleyan had a 29-25 half-time advantage and took its largest
lead, 42-34 with 16:21 left, on a Cory Jones rebound basket before North
Park rallied.
The Vikings eventually tied the game 52-52 as reserve forward Dewon Byrd
hit a jump shot at the 10:47 mark. The Titans took a 55-52 edge with 8:31
left on an Adam Dauksas lay-up but the home team scored the next nine
points - six on Sanchez foul shots - in the next 1:57 to lead 61-55. For
the game, North Park made 85 percent of its free throws (17 of 20), nearly
20 percent higher than it usually shoots from the foul line.
Lehan's two foul shots tied the game at 71-71 with 1:12 left. A Townsend
3-point shot with 42 seconds remaining gave North Park a 74-71 advantage
but the Titans tied the game at 74-74 on an Amelianovich jump shot with 18
seconds left, setting up Townsend's game-winning shot.
North Park travels to Augustana College in Rock Island for a 7:30 p.m.
conference game Saturday before returning home to host Wheaton College in a
7:30 p.m. contest next Wednesday.
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