A thriller it was for what seemed like the perfect trailer of what is to come for the John Carroll University men's basketball team as they enter tournament play. JCU squeezed out a 92-89 team against the Wilmington a Fightin' Quakers, securing their way into the number six seed in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) tournament.

"We brought a championship level effort. That's the theme that we have been going with the last couple of weeks, is to have the championship effort," said head coach Pete Moran. "That's not making every shot, that's being scrappy. We played as a scrappy ball club."

No lead was safe in this afternoon's game between Wilmington and John Carroll. All things considered, the Blue Streaks led by as much as 10 points with three minutes remaining in the contest.

Junior Jimmy Berger said, "We have been in this situation a couple times this year. We stayed poised, got the clock down a bit. We had some good shots at the end and luckily we got the win."

In the final home game of the regular season for the Blue Streaks, JCU struck lightning fast with an 8-0 run to start the game.  John Carroll extended that lead to 10 (18-8) at the 12:46 mark of the first half, with Berger contributing six points.

It did not take long for Wilmington to remind those in attendance that the Fightin' Quakers were one of the toughest teams in the OAC. Wilmington went on a 17-0 run to notch their largest lead of the half (5), making the score 30-25. Wilmington's Will Patrick led the way, tallying eight points.

Despite an incredible Wilmington run, the Blue and Gold countered with a 21-6  point performance to close out the remaining 5:30. Junior Sean Flannery closed out the JCU run by draining a three-point buzzer beater. Flannery took a game-high 13 points into the locker room at the half, with JCU holding the 46-36 advantage at the break.

To open the second half, the Blue Streaks outscored the Fightin' Quakers 14-6, leading 60-42 at the 15:21 mark, taking their largest lead of the game. Sophomore Jackson Sartain had a successful three-pointer during that run, setting a new single-season record for the second year in a row for most successful three-point field goals. He set new program standards last season with 90 made shots from beyond the arc.

"It is a good achievement, but I am never satisfied. Next year, I'm going to look to break that one again," said Sartain.

The Blue Streaks dominated early on in the second half, gaining a 69-51 advantage with 10:58 left in the game. Despite the deficit, the Fightin' Quakers did not go down easy.

By the time the final four minutes rolled around, Wilmington cut John Carroll's advantage down to 10 points, eventually working JCU's lead down to one basket after a successful three-pointer by Patrick with 1:20 remaining.

Flannery was able to increase the lead back to four, but Patrick cut it down to two points with a layup in the paint with 49 seconds remaining.

Wilmington fouled quickly, sending Ryan Berger to the free throw shooting lone. Berger swished both free throws, increasing the lead back up to four.

Then, Kevin Lewis of Wilmington drained a three-pointer making the lead one lone point with two seconds remaining.

Ryan Berger would make both of his free throws on his second consecutive trip to the free throw line. Time would be on the Blue Streaks as the Blue and Gold capped off the regular season with a much-needed, thrilling win.

Sartain led the way with 25 points, with Jimmy Berger (13 points, 13 rebounds) and Luke Hippler (14 points, 12 rebounds) both notching double-doubles.

"We are playing really well and we are going to have a really good opponent coming up on the road. We have some confidence, so we are feeling pretty good," said Hippler.

Entering the OAC tournament as the six seed, John Carroll will be traveling to Marietta to face the Pioneers in the opening round on Tuesday, February 19. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.