Chicago, Ill. – The Carroll University men's basketball team started CCIW play 1-0 with a win over the North Park Vikings on the road. North Park was pre-seasoned ranked 21 in the country, but has since fallen out of the rankings. Carroll won a very physical game, shooing 48.4% from the field, while making seven three-pointers and going 10-12 from the charity stripe. Aaron Wafford gave the Pioneers a big lift on the night, scoring a career-high 26 points and made five of Carroll's seven three-pointers. Three more Pioneers found double-digit scoring on the night.

The Pioneers (6-1, 1-0 CCIW) forced 14 turnovers, grabbed 42 rebounds compared to North Park's 25, had nine steals, seven blocks, and 18 assists on the night. Jacob Naber added 12 points and three rebounds for the Pioneers, and Eckahelo Simpson was able to score 10 points and gather seven rebounds. Kobe Simpson was a major factor in Pioneers win, coming up just two assist short of a triple-double, scoring 11 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and having eight assists.

Carroll was able to jump out to an 8-2 lead as the Pioneers starters looked locked-in and poised against the intense full-court pressure of the Vikings. Carroll would continue to fight for baskets and gain a 10-point advantage off an Evan Bland layup with 12:33 to go in the half. The Vikings would go on a 9-0 run of their own to cut the lead to 17-16, forcing a Carroll timeout. Out of the timeout North Park tied the game at 18. The Pioneers would weather the storm and look to take back control of the game. They did just that as a Wafford three-pointer gave the Pioneers a 26-20 lead with 7:37 to go in the half. The two teams would then battle back and forth, but a Eckahelo and Wafford buckets would bring the lead back to nine. Naber would make a strong move to the basket leaving the Vikings no other choice but to foul him; he would make both free throws and give the Pioneers their largest lead of night at 37-26 with just three-minutes left in the half. The Pioneers would go into the half up 41-31.

North Park looked to get back into the game quickly as they cut the lead to six after scoring on their first two possessions of the half. Carroll showing its maturating and growth from previous seasons didn't flinch as the Vikings looked to make their run. After trading buckets for a considerable amount of time the Vikings were able to cut the lead to 49-45 with 11:49 in the ball game. Wafford, seeming to have an answer to everything on the night, hit another jump shot to go back up six. With just 8:03 left of the clock, Eckahelo would make a layup to give Pioneers their double-digit advantage back and go up 55-45. Carroll would continue to put the pressure on and the game would not get back within double-digits after a Kobe three-pointer at the 6:17 mark. Carroll would continue to cruise on the defensive end end as the Vikings could not find an answer to them, as Wafford and Kobe continued to dominate the offensive end for the Pios. With 1:44 on the clock Wafford would make his final three of the game to take 73-55 advantage. Carroll would continue to possess the ball and walk away with a 77-61 victory.

The Pioneers will stay on the road for CCIW action on Saturday, December 2, as they drive down to Bloomington, Ill. to take on #20 Illinois Wesleyan University at 7:15 PM.