Cold spells can come at inopportune times, especially in a basketball postseason tournament. 

For John Carroll, those cold spells occurred at the start and end of each half, and would play a major factor in an 85-82 loss to the host Guilford College Quakers in the second round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Saturday in Greensboro, North Carolina. 

Box Score

"We could've given up a few times in the second half their outside shooters were on fire,' said John Carroll head coach Mike Moran. "(Tyler) Sanborn makes it difficult on inside play. We forced a lot of turnovers in the second half that made it possible for us to come back. My guys have a lot of heart and I'm very proud of them. I hope Guilford goes all the way." 

John Carroll did not start either half well. Guilford began the night on a 10-3 run that forced the Blue Streaks to play catch up. 

The Streaks did catch the Quakers at 14-14 on a three-pointer by Michael Hartnett at the 15:48 mark, and then would pull ahead on a T.J. Disanto (Highland Hts., OH, St. Ignatius) three-point field goal with 6:50 to play that made the score 26-24.
As soon as John Carroll grabbed the lead, it would go ice cold for the remainder of the half. With only a Rudy Kirbus (Willoughby Hills, OH, Cleveland St. Ignatius) three ball with 38 seconds to show their efforts, the Blue Streaks would watch their two point advantage erased with a 10-3 Quaker run that gave the home team a 34-29 lead at the break. 

Another quick start by Guilford would put the Blue Streaks into the largest hole of the night. The Quakers scored 15 of the first 18 points of the half to take a 49-32 lead on Josh Pittman's three-point field goal with 14:59 showing on the clock. 

JCU would begin a slow climb back. Joe Meyer (Mentor, OH, Mentor) would knock the deficit into single digits when he dropped in a lay-up at the end of the fast break that made the score 51-43 with just over 13 minutes to play. Several minutes later, Maurice Haynes II (Cleveland, OH, Villa Angela-St. Joseph) would cut the Guilford to two points at 66-64. 

Guilford ran the lead back out to eight points at 72-64 on back-to-back three pointers by Pittman, but John Carroll had an answer. Capped by a steal and three-pointer by Corey Shontz (Andover, OH, Pymatuning Valley), a 13-2 run by the Blue Streaks would put the visitors up for the first time in the second half at 77-74 with 4:11 to play.
 
JCU simply could not sustain the effort, however, missing seven of its final nine shots from the field. 

After Maurice Haynes hit a jumper with 2:56 remaining to give the Blue Streaks their last lead at 79-78, Rhett Bonner would score the next five points for the Quakers. After making two free throws to give his team the lead, the two teams missed the next five shots taken before Bonner dropped in a lay-up with 36 ticks left that put the score at 82-79 in favor of Guilford. 

A missed three by Shontz led to a foul, and Bonner converted one of the two free throws to put the advantage at four points. 

Haynes cut the lead down to 84-82 when he tipped in a missed free throw with just under seven seconds left on the clock, leading to another foul on the in-bound pass. When Clay Henson missed the front end of the two-shot opportunity, he gave JCU one last window. But Kirbus' attempt to tie the game at the buzzer was off target. 

"It was a great ride for myself and the other seniors," said Kirbus. "What a way to go out. (Looking back) It was about more than just the wins and losses. Our success here has been awesome but its more because of the friends we've gained here. It's more than just basketball at John Carroll."

Guilford (28-2), which ended John Carroll's season in the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive year, was paced by a game-high 27 points from Henson, who made five three pointers in the first half alone. 

Tyler Sanborn added 19 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Pittman and Bonner scored 13 and 12 points respectively for the Quakers, who 28-59 (.475) from the field and 12-28 (.429) from thee-point range for the game. 

John Carroll (21-7) was paced by 17 points from Kirbus, 14 from Shontz and 13 from Matt Crozier (Philadelphia, PA, LaSalle College). The Blue Streaks stayed in the game despite shooting 28-76 (.368) from the floor for the game thanks to 17 offensive rebounds, forcing 16 turnovers and making 12-14 (.857) from the free throw line.
 
Despite the loss, Moran still was proud of the effort. 

"I'm proud of their effort versus formidable opponents like Guilford," said Moran. "Look at the last three minutes of the game. It was great basketball. Honestly, what did people pay to get into this game ... six bucks? That's a deal."