North Park Pulls Away from Eureka, 81-58

EUREKA – After a close first half, North Park pulled away from the Eureka men's basketball team in the second half and picked up an 81-58 victory over the Red Devils on Sunday.

The Red Devils, who were shorthanded due to COVID-19 protocols, led by as many as eight in the first half and only trailed by five at halftime.

However, the Vikings shot 63.9 percent in the second half to take control of the game.

Eureka leading scorer Charlie McKinty (Elmwood, Ill./Elmwood) notched a team-high 11 points in the loss. Sophomore David Hill (Elgin, Ill./Elgin) reached double figures for the second time this season, tallying 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field while gathering a career-high five rebounds.

J'Len Crawford (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington) added nine points and rebounds. Lane Thompson (Dwight, Ill./Dwight) pulled down a team-high seven rebounds to go with six points.

Ian Milsteadt (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) finished with five points in 14 minutes after being plagued by foul trouble. Conner Zuber (Olney, Ill./Richland County) contributed five points in six minutes off the bench, and freshman Sam DeJesus (Delavan, Ill./Delavan) recorded four points and rebounds in his Red Devil debut.

North Park leading scorer Michael Osborne recorded a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds on 8-of-15 shooting. Jordan Boyd and Gabe Johnson each contributed 11 points, while Karl Polk Jr. added 10 points off the bench.

Sunday was the Red Devils' last scheduled non-conference game of the season. Eureka (4-7) begins St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday against Westminster (4-7) inside Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center at 5 p.m.