Men's Hoops Knocks of Eagles for NCCAA Regional Road Win

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.-- North Central Men's Basketball traveled to Faith Baptist Bible College on Saturday afternoon and picked up a hard fought 78-65 win to move to 2-0 in NCCAA Regional Competition.

Following a first half that remained tight throughout, the Rams pushed the lead to 9 at the break. Second half action saw the Eagles cut the lead down to three with 10:27 to play before NCU was able to control the game and pull away for a solid road victory. 

NCU was led by junior Levi Kooistra (Brookfield, Ill.) who scored 18 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Freshman Nate Roeder (Hudson, Wis.) added 18 points and 7 rebounds as he and Kooistra were the game's high scorers. Senior Jeremy Grilley (Columbia Falls, Mont.) added 16 and senior Phil Johnson scored 10. Junior Ross Johnson (Kenosha, Wis.) was North Central's leading rebounder with a season high 13.

North Central returns to action tomorrow night with a 7:30 pm home tip-off verses Northwestern College (St. Paul, Minn.). The Rams also host Martin Luther College (New Ulm, Minn.) and Presentation College (Aberdeen, S.D.) on Thursday and Friday evening with both games tipping off at 7:30 pm.

NCU lost to Northwestern 73-64 on November 20 at the Erickson Center at NWC. The Rams will face off with Martin Luther College for the first time this season before hosting Presentation College. North Central defeated the Saints 60-52 in Aberdeen on December 10.