UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University men's basketball team dopped a nail-biter Ohio Athletic Conference game to crosstown rival John Carroll University by a final score of 69-66 inside the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center. The game featured 13 lead changes, eight ties and the biggest lead for either team was seven points.
BW (1-4, 1-4 OAC) had three players score in double figures led by freshman guard Drew Wennes (Huron) as he scored a career-high and game-best 21 points. Sophomore guard Jake Snyder (Akron/Archbishop Hoban) set a career-high for the second straight game as he poured in 18 points. Junior guard Shane Zalba (Mentor) added 11.
John Carroll (1-1, 1-1 OAC) had three players score in double digits led by senior All-OAC Jackson Sartain as he scored 19 points. Senior forward Luke Hippler chipped in 15 points. Sophomore guard Eric Hanna contributed 10 points.
The Yellow Jackets took an early 10-9 lead on a Wennes layup at the 16:04 mark. The Blue Streaks responded and took the largest lead of the first half at 31-24 on a Hippler layup at 4:23. BW closed the gap to 33-32 on a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Jackson Simmons (Wadsworth) with 2:44 remaining in the opening half. John Carroll closed the half by outscoring the Yellow Jackets by a 4-2 margin to lead 37-34 at the intermission.
BW opened the second half on a 10-5 run to tie the game at 42-42 on a three-pointer by Snyder at the 18:33 mark. The Blue Streaks responded with a 5-0 run to take the 47-42 lead on a triple from Sartain at 16:27. The Yellow Jackets answered with an 13-4 run to take a 55-51 lead on a triple from Snyder at the 13:58 mark mark. John Carroll fought back with a 6-1 run to take a 57-56 lead on a layup by Emmett Chambers at 9:36. BW would tie the game for the last time at 60-60 on a layup by Wennes at the 4:51 mark. The Blue Streaks held off the Yellow Jackets by scoring nine of the last 15 points to secure the 69-66 win.
BW closes out the home-and-home weekend series on Saturday, February 6 when it hosts John Carroll in the Ursprung Gymnasium inside the Lou Higgins Center at 6:30 p.m.
