Men’s Basketball rallies past John Carroll 73-71 on Senior Night 

By Bud Denega 

ADA — The Ohio Northern men's basketball team simply outworked John Carroll Saturday afternoon inside the ONU Sports Center. The Polar Bears didn't outshoot the Blue Streaks from the field, failed to connect on as many 3-pointers and only played eight players, but a workmanlike attitude vaulted them carried them through.

Northern claimed a 73-71 victory, snapping its eight-game losing streak, to improve to 7-16 on the season and 3-13 in Ohio Athletic Conference play. The loss dropped John Carroll to 15-8 overall and 8-8 in conference action. 

The Blue Streaks led for the first 31:13 of the contest before ONU senior Caleb Bryan (Pittsburgh, Pa./Montour) knotted things at 54-54 with 8:47 left. Two more freebies by Bryan 14 seconds later gave the Polar Bears their first advantage. 

Freshman C.J. Napier (Miamisburg/Bishop Fenwick) tallied five straight to extend Northern's advantage to 61-56 edge with 6:45 to play. Bryan kept it a two-score game, 67-63, on a layup at the 3:28 mark.

Sophomore Brandon Waugh (Columbus/Northland) helped the Polar Bears remain out in front on a layup and two free throws, the last of which made it a 73-71 with nine seconds left. John Carroll's Sean Flannery missed a contested look from 3-point land that would have won the game, but it came up short.  

Napier led the way for ONU, pouring in 19 points to go alongside nine rebounds. Bryan, after celebrating senior night, boasted a double-double, consisting of 17 points and 12 rebounds, and fellow senior Austin Allemeier (Elida) added 16 points and four steals. 

The Polar Bears shot 33.9 percent (21 of 62) from the field and 28.6 percent (6 of 21) from 3-point land. The Blue Streaks made 41.7 percent (25 of 60) of their field-goal attempts and 30.8 percent (8 of 26) of their 3-pointers. 

Northern won the rebounding battle 47-36, which included a 16-6 edge on the offensive glass. That resulted in a decided 15-2 advantage for the Polar Bears in second-chance points. 

John Carroll's Ryan Berger led all scorers with 28 points.

The Blue Streaks led by double figures with just five minutes gone in the opening half and kept their distance for most of the first half. John Carroll led by nine, 41-32 at halftime, but it didn't take the Polar Bears long to make it a tightly contested game down the stretch. 

Otterbein logged an 88-68 home win over Muskingum Saturday, which eliminated ONU from the upcoming OAC Tournament. The tourney only takes the top eight in the final standings, and the Polar Bears can't catch the eighth-place Cardinals with just two games to play. 

Northern remains at home, playing host to Heidelberg Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Polar Bears fell to the Student Princes 70-51 on Jan. 8 in Tiffin.