Déjà vu settled in at the DeCarlo Varsity Center Thursday night, as for the second time in 15 days, John Carroll and Heidelberg squared off as two teams tied for third place trying to keep pace with first-place Marietta.

And just like 15 days ago, John Carroll used a strong second half effort to subdue a tenacious Student Princes squad -- this time by an 81-69 score.

Box Score

The last four times that these two teams had met prior to tonight, the away team has won by seven or fewer. Using that standard, an 81-69 win was a veritable blowout.

But it was close game throughout.

“I felt like I was playing street ball,” said seniorMaurice Haynes II (Cleveland, OH, Villa Angela-St. Joseph). “We had to make sure they couldn't transition.” 

With both teams displaying physicality and speed, the first half was tough for both offenses. JCU and Heidelberg each finished the opening 20 minutes shooting under 37%, but the Blue Streaks -- who twice led by as many as 14 points -- still managed to hold a slight 40-36 advantage when intermission arrived.

The Blue Streaks surged early in the second, pushing the lead up to ten on three separate occasions.  A Kenny Janz put-back lay-up at the 8:31 mark gave John Carroll a 64-54 lead.  The JCU faithful hoped for more, but a missed opportunity seemed to send momentum the other way.

A breakaway by Corey Shontz seemed assured of building JCU's lead back up to nine, but it turned into a missed dunk by Mark Hester. Heidelberg responded with back-to-back baskets by Nate Davis and Dane Givner to cut the lead to 64-61 with 4:59 to play.
 
The Blue Streaks needed something big to turn the momentum back in their favor.
 
Help was on the way from Joe Meyer (Mentor, OH, Mentor)and Mark Hester (Ashtabula, OH, Lakeside), who made their own back-to-back baskets from 3-point range. The two long range knockdowns stretched the John Carroll lead back up to 70-61 with four minutes left.

JCU never allowed Heidelberg to get closer than five points the rest of the way. The Streaks made seven of their nine free throws, allowing them to put a tight seal on the win. 

John Carroll (14-6, 9-4 OAC), who climbed into a tie for second place with Capital and remains two games behind first-place Marietta, was led by 21 points from Joe Meyer (Mentor, OH, Mentor). Corey Shontz (Andover, OH, Pymatuning Valley) added 15 points and a game-high nine assists. Hester (15) andMaurice Haynes II (Cleveland, OH, Villa Angela-St. Joseph)(12) also reached double figures, with Haynes completing a double-double with 11 rebounds.

JCU also had a season-high 24 offensive rebounds.

Heidelberg (10-10, 8-5 OAC) was led by 15 points from Givner, 14 from Darion Capers and 13 off the bench from Victor Fortkamp.

The Blue Streaks, who completed the season sweep of Heidelberg (won 87-82 in Tiffin on January 19) now have a clear picture of what they have to do in the final five games of the regular season.
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“Every game is important from here on out,” said Haynes. “We're in control of our own destiny.”