Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

John Carroll University Athletics

home of the Blue Streaks
Luke Frazier vs. Heidelberg on 1-15-25
Jose Figueroa
70
Heidelberg HEID 9-5,5-2 OAC
77
Winner John Carroll JCU 10-4,5-2 OAC
Heidelberg HEID
9-5,5-2 OAC
70
Final
77
John Carroll JCU
10-4,5-2 OAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Heidelberg HEID 27 43 70
John Carroll JCU 35 42 77

Next Game:

at Muskingum University

1/18/2025 | 1:00 PM

Next Game

Full Schedule
Jan. 18 (Sat) / 1:00 PM
at Muskingum University
History

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Jack Stephens, Staff Writer

Blue Streaks Conquer Student Princes in Key Home Conquest

Men's Basketball knocked Heidelberg out of a first-place tie in the OAC standings

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS — Defeating adversity has been the story of the John Carroll Blue Streaks Men's basketball season so far. 

But John Carroll did not experience many struggles in snagging a comfortable Ohio Athletic Conference win over the Heidelberg Student Princes, 77-70, extending their winning streak to seven games. 

After battling tough injuries and a four game losing streak, all Pete Moran's squad has done is rattle off seven straight victories, including a 74-61 win over #7 Hampden-Sydney. The Student Prince entered as a stout challenger, tied for first in the OAC at 9-4. But the Blue Streaks never trailed at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center. 

Senior guard Chase Toppin broke the ice for the Blue Streaks with a triple from the right wing. After falling behind by five points early, the Student Princes clawed their way to erase the early deficit. Three out of the first five Blue Streak buckets came off of assists, the third came from a great find from David Gentry to Kasey Hunt for a 3-pointer. Hunt made a significant impact early, scoring 7 points in 3 minutes to give the Blue Streaks a 16-8 lead into the first media timeout. 

It was soon a block party on both ends, as Heidelberg center Eric Panning made a stuff. Then senior guard Luke Fraizer chased down a Student Prince fastbreak, swatting the shot attempt into the bleachers. Both teams went cold from the field for a few minutes, then Henry Raynor threw down an alley oop off a perfect pass from Will Yontek. Heidelberg quickly responded with a 7-0 run to cut the lead to three, until Yontek threw down a jam to end the run.

After trading buckets down the stretch of the first half, Brandon Rose went on a solo 4-0 run, including a layup to beat the buzzer to put JCU up 35-27 at halftime. 

It was a group effort for the Blue Streaks offensively, as Raynor and Rose both scored a team-high eight points. Seven of the nine guys who hit the floor in the first half etched their names in the scorer's book with points. Yontek was battling in the paint throughout the whole first half against a 6'10" opponent, leading the game with six rebounds. 

Markell Johnson-Nichols scored a game-high 11 points on five of six shooting. The Heidelberg Student Princes went 0-for-8 from three in the first half. 

That cold streak from three would end quickly for the Student Princes as Manny Hill drilled their first triple of the game on Heidelberg's first shot attempt of the second half. Every time Heidelberg tried to claw their way back, the Blue Streaks answered as the JCU lead stayed between four and seven points for a large portion of the second half.

Heidelberg trimmed the deficit to three until Frazier scored the next seven points to put the Blue Streaks back up 10. Toppin hit another three to grow the Blue Streak advantage to their largest of the game, 68-55. Once again, Heidelberg continued to hang around, as the visitors exploded on a 10-0 run to cut the lead down to three. In desperate need of some offense, John Carroll turned to Will Yontek, who got physical in the paint and finished with his right hand to end the run. The offense did not stop there, as Aiden Fitzgerald and Yontek both scored to make the lead nine with under a minute to play. 

A pair of free throws from Fitzgeraled capped off an impressive wire-to-wire victory for JCU as they won their seventh straight, 77-70. 

Three players hit double figures for the Blue Streaks, but Luke Frazier led the way with 21 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists. Fitzgerald and Raynor both tabbed 11 points. Will Yontek did the dirty work in the paint, collecting 6 rebounds and holding Heidelberg's second leading scorer to 10 points. The Blue Streaks as a team enjoyed an advantage inside, outrebounding the Student Princes 41-22, and tallying 40 points in the paint. 

"We finally found our identity," Raynor commented about how the Blue Streaks have turned around their season so quickly. "Our defense has been really good, this is the most points we have given up in a while, so we plan to keep that rolling."

Next Up
John Carroll puts their win streak on the line again, as they hit the road to New Concord, Ohio to take on Muskingum on Saturday at 1 pm. The Fighting Muskies are tied for the top spot in the OAC standings with a 6-1 record in conference play.
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Luke Frazier

#5 Luke Frazier

G
6' 6"
Senior
David Gentry

#33 David Gentry

PF/C
6' 6"
Senior
Henry Raynor

#20 Henry Raynor

F
6' 7"
Senior
Brandon Rose

#1 Brandon Rose

G/F
6' 3"
Sophomore
Chase Toppin

#4 Chase Toppin

G
6' 1"
Senior
Will Yontek

#3 Will Yontek

F
6' 7"
Senior
Kasey Hunt

#15 Kasey Hunt

6' 4"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Luke Frazier

#5 Luke Frazier

6' 6"
Senior
G
David Gentry

#33 David Gentry

6' 6"
Senior
PF/C
Henry Raynor

#20 Henry Raynor

6' 7"
Senior
F
Brandon Rose

#1 Brandon Rose

6' 3"
Sophomore
G/F
Chase Toppin

#4 Chase Toppin

6' 1"
Senior
G
Will Yontek

#3 Will Yontek

6' 7"
Senior
F
Kasey Hunt

#15 Kasey Hunt

6' 4"
Junior

Sponsors