John Carroll (10-6, 6-3 OAC) overcame a 16-point second half deficit to earn an 83-72 win against Mount Union (8-8, 3-6 OAC) in the Timken Gym in Alliance, Ohio, Wednesday evening, January 17.
The Purple Raiders led most of the contest, including holding a 39-32 lead at halftime. In the second period, the Purple & White went up 16 at 50-34 following a layup by guard Nick Sefscik with 17:56 left on the clock. However, the Blue Streaks battled back, trailing by nine at 70-61 with 5:38 remaining in the contest.
From that point on, the visitors went on an 18-0 run, capped by a pair free throws by guard Pete Moran with 0:50 seconds on the game clock - making it 79-70 Blue Streaks in the final minute of play. During that stretch, the Raiders went over seven minutes without a field goal - scoring just two points at the charity stripe before post Justin Francis converted a layup with 0:34 left to play.
Mount Union was led statistically by forward Stu Anglum's 19, guard Sam King's 12 and Sefscik's 10. John Carroll guard Brandon Mimes posted a game-high 25 point/16 rebound effort.
Mount Union shot .426 from the field compared to .393 for the visitors. The Streaks committed 15 turnovers to the Raiders' 22. John Carroll had a slight rebounding edge (43-39). The game was tied only twice and there were just three lead changes on the night.
The Purple Raiders next travel to New Concord for a 3 p.m. tip-off versus Muskingum, Saturday afternoon, January 20.