It's not how you start, it's how you finish.

Following a hot start, the John Carroll University men's basketball team fell to the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio, 100-94, on Wednesday evening.

The Blue Streaks have now lost three in a row, and fall to 22-3, 14-3 against Ohio Athletic Conference opponents on the season.

JCU and Mount Union stood deadlocked at 93 with 2:42 remaining. Neither team could muster a basket the rest of the way, as the Purple Raiders used physical play to earn free throws and seal the win in the final minute.

David Linane led the JCU offense with 17 points in the loss. Danny Wallack added 14 points, shooting 4-of-7 from behind the arc.

The game began slowly until Wallack buried a trey from the wing with 15:49 remaining in the first. Wallack's shot granted JCU a 9-8 lead, which the Blue Streaks built to as many as six over the next few minutes. Will Starks nailed a jumper and John Cirillo sank a 3-pointer in consecutive possessions, extending the lead to 17-11.

The Purple Raiders answered with two straight makes from behind the arc to knot the game at 17. JCU's second unit then made itself heard, as Ryan Farragher and Cirillo each hit shots to regain the lead.

At the 11 minute mark, the first line re-entered the game, and Wallack promptly nailed his second shot from deep, extending the lead to 24-20. Simon Kucharewicz then added a layup and an authoritative dunk, making the score 30-25 with 7:30 left in the first.

The teams then traded misses and makes, leading to a back-and-forth for the next five minutes. The score remained within two possessions until the final two minutes of the first stanza.

Brian Papich hit two free throws before the first line checked back into the game and wreaked havoc. Starks hit a 3-pointer, Caputo kissed a shot off the glass and Wallack connected on a jumper to extend JCU's lead to 11 with 1:14 remaining in the half.

A Cody Dillon 3-pointer and a pair of Miles Griffin free throws narrowed the deficit for the Purple Raiders in the final minute. Heading into halftime, the Blue Streaks held a 47-41 lead. Wallack lead all scorers with 12 points at halftime as JCU shot 54.4 percent in the first 20 minutes.

The teams roared out of the starting gate in the second half, as Kucharewicz hit a layup for JCU and Griffin connected on a 3-pointer in the first possession for each team. Two and a half minutes into the period, Mount Union tied the contest at 54 after a Dillon trey and a Jarrett Ruffin layup.

The Blue Streaks responded in kind with a 9-0 run. A deep Linane jumper from the far wing advanced the JCU lead to 63-54 at the 15 minute mark of the half, leading Mount Union to burn a timeout.

The Purple Raiders mounted a quick comeback after the brief respite, as the hosts narrowed the deficit to four thanks to a couple of makes from downtown.

Mount Union kept it within two possessions for the next five minutes, bringing the game within two on multiple occasions. But each time the Purple Raiders scored, the Blue Streaks provided an answer. Papich played a particularly key role on the second line, hitting numerous shots to keep JCU in the lead.

Following several stout defensive stops, the Blue Streaks finally relented the lead with 6:04 left. Kyle Scelza knocked down a 3-pointer to give Mount Union a slim 80-79 lead. Linane didn't allow the Purple Raiders to keep the lead for long, however, as the junior drove the lane, made the shot and drew a Mount Union foul. Linane completed the play with the free throw, a lead JCU struggled to hold onto.

Following a spirited Mount Union effort that tied the game and briefly took the lead, Ryan Farragher connected on a critical 3-pointer with 3:57 left. The shot granted JCU a 91-87 lead with 3:57 remaining. The final few minutes of action proved to be crazy.

Two Dillon free throws and a Scelza layup tied the contest at 91 with 3:03 remaining. Ruffin grabbed the lead for the Purple Raiders with two free throws before Starks came back with a jumper with 2:42 remaining.

Then, the offenses went cold. Neither team could muster any points until Ruffin drew a foul call on Kucharewicz in the low post with 1:02 left. Ruffin connected on both shots, granting Mount Union a 95-93 lead. A JCU turnover then led to a lengthy Mount Union possession, as the Purple Raiders grabbed a rebound after a miss, forcing Kucharewiz to foul Ruffin again. Ruffin again hit both, extending the Mount Union lead to four with 15 seconds left.

Following another 3-point miss and a Mount Union rebound, JCU had to foul again. Josh Duerr and Scelza iced the game more free throws in the final seconds, handing JCU its third straight loss.

The Blue Streaks finish the regular season on Saturday, as JCU hosts Muskingum University for Senior Day at 2 p.m.