With the game tied for the 20th time at 76-76 at the 2:09 mark, John Carroll was able to win the race to the finish line. JCU’s Pete Moran hit a jumper to put his team up by two with 1:56, after which Ross Banaszak – who entered the game as a 90 percent shooter from the free throw line – missed the second of two free tosses which would have tied the game.
From that point on, the Blue Streaks would keep a somewhat safe distance. John Carroll’s Demetrius Travis tipped in a teammate’s missed shot, giving the Blue Streaks an 80-77 lead. Otterbein’s Tommy Young returned the favor with a lay-up of his own with 45 seconds remaining, cutting the deficit to one.
Free throws made the difference late. Moran split a pair of free throws with 35 seconds remaining, giving the Blue Streaks a two point advantage. Otterbein played for a final shot, but Scott Cores was fouled with five seconds left. He would miss the first but make the second to put the score at 81-80.
JCU’s Derek Smith was fouled with three seconds left, as the Cardinals sent the junior center --who began the day with a .488 free throw percentage – to the line. Smith sank both free throws for John Carroll’s final points.
The Cardinals were able to make a last dtitch effort. After Adam Wells was fouled to prevent a last minute three-pointer, he hit his first free throw but missed his second on purpose. Will Parker got the rebound and a shot off, but it drew only backboard.
Otterbein began the game by pulling taking advantage of a sluggish JCU offense, and took a 19-11 lead on a Young lay-up with 9:08 showing on the first half clock. The Blue Streaks would recover and eventually take a 25-23 lead.
The Cardinals surged to a 34-30 in the final minute of the opening period, but Moran gave JCU some momentum heading into the locker room by drilling a three-pointer as time expired, making the score 34-33 in the Cardinals’ favor.
Moran scored in double figures for his seventh straight game, leading John Carroll (6-1, 3-0 OAC) with 23 points and five assists. Travis (14), Smith (12) and Ragor (10) also reached double figures for the host Blue Streaks, who improved to 40-4 over their last 44 home games.
Otterbein (2-5, 0-3 OAC) also had four players in double figures Young led the Cardinals with 20 points and Kevin King added 18 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Banaszak had 16 and Wells contributed 10 for the Cardinals, who are 0-3 in league play for the first time since 1998-99.
Otterbein vs John Carroll 12-10-05 3:00pm at DeCarlo Varsity Center JOHN CARROLL 83, OTTERBEIN 81 OTTERBEIN (2-5, 0-3 OAC) Tommy Young 8-11 4-4 20; Kevin King 7-10 4-6 18; Ross Banaszak 3-9 9-12 16; Adam Wells 4-4 1-3 10; Scott Cores 1-6 6-7 8; Eric Murphy 2-6 0-0 4; Will Parker 1-4 0-0 3; Judah Snyder 1-1 0-0 2; Tyler Ousley 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 27-52 24-34 81. JOHN CARROLL (6-1, 3-0 OAC) Pete Moran 9-15 4-6 23; Demetrius Travis 6-13 2-5 14; Derek Smith 3-6 6-8 12; Justin Ragor 3-10 3-4 10; Chris Day 3-4 2-2 9; John Curran 1-6 4-5 6; Kyle Roggenburk 2-8 1-2 5; Jon Franks 2-4 0-2 4; Joe Kimener 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-67 22-34 83. Otterbein..................... 33 48 - 81 John Carroll.................. 32 51 - 83 3-point goals-Otterbein 3-11 (Ross Banaszak 1-4; Adam Wells 1-1; Will Parker 1-2; Eric Murphy 0-3; Scott Cores 0-1), John Carroll 3-11 (Justin Ragor 1-4; Chris Day 1-2; Pete Moran 1-3; John Curran 0-2). Fouled out--Otterbein-Kevin King; Tyler Ousley, John Carroll-None. Rebounds-Otterbein 45 (Kevin King 12), John Carroll 40 (Demetrius Travis 6; Kyle Roggenburk 6). Assists-Otterbein 7 (Will Parker 3), John Carroll 10 (Pete Moran 5). Total fouls-Otterbein 29, John Carroll 23. A-521