Kenosha, Wis. -- The Wheaton men's basketball team headed north across state lines this afternoon to take on the conference-leading Carthage Firebirds in the second of three-consecutive road games. The hosting Firebirds snapped the Thunder's three-game winning streak with an 89-80 victory today to secure their spot in the semifinals of the upcoming CCIW Tournament as one of the top two seeds. Today's result eliminates Wheaton from possible conference tournament qualification, as the team can no longer finish in the top six of the CCIW standings.
Carthage jumped out to a quick 5-0 advantage in this afternoon's contest and would hold the lead from start to finish. The game's top scorer,
Soren Richardson, accounted for six of Wheaton's first eight points today, and a fast break layup from the sophomore pulled his team within one at 13-12 just over five minutes in. But the home side responded with the next four points, and this proved to be the pattern of the first half, as the visitors would stay within touching distance of the Firebirds without managing to surge ahead. Carthage stretched its lead to double-figures at 41-31 with five minutes remaining in the frame, but the Thunder scored on their next two trips down the floor to remain in sight of their Wisconsin opposition. After the hosts went back up by nine heading into the final 90 seconds of the period, a Richardson free throw and a
Kyan VanderWoude jumper in the lane would trim the Firebirds' lead down to 48-42 at the break.
Wheaton began the second half in perfect fashion, as
Kyle Neibch (pictured right) drained a three-pointer after a Carthage turnover, before Richardson capitalized on a Neibch steal with another basket to
pull the Thunder back within one point. But the Firebirds steadied themselves with consecutive jumpers thereafter to prevent their guests from claiming a first lead of the game. Leading 58-53 five minutes into the second frame, Carthage knocked down back-to-back threes to stretch its advantage up to double-digits, and this would be the spark the conference-leaders needed to close out their 18th win of the year. The hosts' lead ballooned up to 17 points with ten minutes left to play, before a 9-0 run for the Thunder capped by another Neibch triple quieted the home crowd. Another consecutive three-pointer series for Wheaton trimmed Carthage's edge down to five points at 85-80 with a minute and a half to play. But the home team broke its cold spell from the floor with a jumper on its next possession before sinking two foul shots to go up by nine to reach the game's final scoreline.
Carthage's impressive shooting numbers fueled today's result, as the hosts went 51.5% from the floor, 40% from three-point range, and made 11 of their 13 free throw attempts. Wheaton posted a solid 45.7% mark from the field on Saturday but had to settle for a 10-29 tally from beyond the arc and picked up just six points at the foul line. The Firebirds earned a 39-34 rebounding advantage, while both squads committed only seven turnovers. The Thunder carved out a 15-6 scoring edge on the fast break, while Carthage got five more points from its bench at a 19-14 split.
Richardson tallied his fourth 30-point game of the season to lead all scorers on Saturday and was the only player to make more than nine shot attempts. VanderWoude maintained his double-double streak of recent weeks with a 13-point, 11-rebound showing this afternoon. Neibch contributed 12 points and seven rebounds, while
Devin Martin scored 11 and earned a joint game-high five assists alongside
Steven Schultz.
Noah Hedrick went for eight points, seven boards, and three assists today.
The Thunder will travel to Rock Island on Wednesday for a 7 PM game at Augustana College before concluding the 2024-25 campaign next Saturday with their Senior Night game against North Central in King Arena.
