Although John Carroll entered the game Saturday with the conference title already clinched, there was plenty left to play for.
The motivation was evident in John Carroll’s wire-to-wire 109-83 win over Ohio Northern Saturday at DeCarlo Varsity Center.
Box Score
The team knew the win today could potentially rank them as the No.1 team in the region.
“We are not number one in the region,” explained sophomore Corey Shontz. “And that gave us motivation to play with a lot of intensity. If we are ranked number one in the region we get to play on our home court with our fans and not travel. And that’s very important to us.”
This win gives the Streaks a record of 19-5 overall and 15-3 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The game today proved their dominance at home as the Blue Streaks hold a record of 38-9 at the DeCarlo Varsity Center over the last four seasons.
Extending their winning streak to 10 games, the Blue Streaks wasted no time in dispatching their guest. Before the first time out called in the game by Ohio Northern at 13:38, the Blue Streaks led the Polar Bears, 19-6.
Throughout the first half John Carroll dominated on offense and forced the Polar Bears to 11 turnovers. Seven of those turnovers were John Carroll steals.
Although John Carroll had a double-digit lead, the game was intense. With 5:18 left in the first half, elbows were thrown between the two teams and senior Brian Dandrea received a technical foul and was ejected from the game.
“The kid threw a couple elbows at me and I lost my head for a second.” Dandrea said.
Once Dandrea left the game, four Polar Bears went to the free throw line. A total of three technical fouls were called during the first half, including one on sophomore Matt Crozier.
Despite the slew of fouls called on the Blue Streaks, they ended the half with a 16-point lead thanks in large part to the play of senior TJ DiSanto. Using expanded minutes in the wake of Dandrea’s ejection, DiSanto scored seven points in the final seven minutes of the half.
The second half proved to be an undramatic one as the Blue Streaks continued to dominate the Polar Bears, never letting their lead go lower than 12 points.
Another significant factor for the Blue Streaks coming out with much enthusiasm today is winning a game for the 5 seniors on their “Senior Day.”
“All the seniors are really good friends and we wanted to win it for them,” said Crozier. “They deserve it.”
The Blue Streaks did not disappoint their seniors. Seven players scored in the double digits and the Blue Streaks forced the Polar Bears to turn the ball over 16 times. JCU also had a total of 10 steals.
“It’s a great feeling and it’s really special,” said senior Rudy Kirbus, who contributed a total of 14 points. “We’re going to be friends for a long time off the court. It’s bittersweet.”
Shontz and Maurice Haynes were the leading scorers for the Blue Streaks, each scoring a total of 16 points.
The leading scorer for the Polar Bears was Ezra Bradshaw with a total of 26 points, while Kyle Meyer added 17 points.