The John Carroll University men's basketball team and the Wilmington College Fightin' Quakers were in a heavily contested match on Saturday afternoon. After 11 ties and 11 lead changes, Wilmington pulled away late in the game (99-84) to be the last one standing.

In the first half, John Carroll seemed to have the upper hand by having several leads over the course of the first twenty minutes. Despite continually playing catch up to eliminate the Blue Streaks' leads, Wilmington did not flinch and repeatedly brought the score back within either two points or a tie. However, John Carroll's lead would be erased due to a buzzer-beating three pointer by Wilmington's Kevin Lewis that tied the game at 45 and sent the Fightin' Quakers into the locker room with the momentum.

Jimmy Berger and Sean Flannery both showed out for the Blue and Gold in the first half, with both scoring 11 points to add to the John Carroll offensive attack. Connor Fitzgerald also added nine points to aid in the Blue Streaks' apparent dominance in the first twenty.

In the second half, Wilmington started to control the scoreboard after a big three pointer by Andrew Russell at the 15:59 mark. From that single shot, the Fightin' Quaker fans got into the game, giving Wilmington the true home court advantage.

By the 5:51 mark, the Fightin' Quakers brought their lead into the double digits, which was maintained for the rest of the game.

For John Carroll, Berger came out to play and it showed in the stat sheet as he led the team in scoring (20), assists (4), and rebounds (7). Other Blue Streaks that finished with double-digit scoring performances include Jackson Sartain (18), Flannery (14), and Fitzgerald (12). All of Sartain's points were the result of shots from beyond the arc.

On defense, Berger, Flannery and Fitzgerald recorded one steal.

For Wilmington, five players scored in the double figures. Lewis led the team with 23 points, while Abdul Kanu added 14 points and six rebounds along with one block.

Wilmington had a lot of help from their bench in the winning effort, with 49 of their points coming from nonstarters. Will Patrick (17) and Jeffery Mansfield (12) led the bench scoring, while Russell followed with 11. 

With the loss, John Carroll now stands at 6-7 (2-4 OAC) on the season, while Wilmington improves to a 7-5 (3-3 OAC) record.

Next up, the Blue Streaks will head home to face OAC opponent Heidelberg on Wednesday, January 9 at 7:00 p.m.