It's the time of year when losing means going home, and with that mind, John Carroll and Capital battled it out to the last minute at the DeCarlo Varsity Center Thursday night. 

After a slow first half for both teams, the Blue Streaks defeated the Crusaders for a third time this season, 81-74, and will advance to the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament Finals. 

Box Score

This marks John Carroll's fifth appearance in the OAC Tournament final in the last nine years. JCU won the crown in 2003, 2004 and 2009, and was runner-up in 2007. 

It was a unified effort as sharpshooters, playmakers and bench players all played their roles in getting John Carroll past Capital for the seventh consecutive time.



With the exception of JCU junior guard Mike Hartnett, who was 4-5 from 3-point range, most of the Blue Streaks suffered through a cold first half. The Blue Streaks were just 11-35 (.355) from the field in the opening 20 minutes yet still lead 33-31 at the break. 

Things changed in the second half. The Blue Streaks came out firing with junior guard Corey Shontz leading the way by scoring 19 second half-points. At one point, Shontz scored 11 in a row for the Blue Streaks and 16 in a 24-point stretch . 

“I found a lot of openings,” said Shontz. “With (Mike) Hartnett's shooting in the first half, the floor opened up for me in the second, and I was able to score.” 

Hartnett, whose 12 first half points included three at the buzzer to give JCU the lead heading into the locker room, felt the Blue Streaks needed everyone to step up when called upon, and his time was the first half. 

“I wasn't expecting much since I had shot so well against them before,” said Hartnett. “I was able to find some open looks and create some space to get my shot off though and it everything seemed to go in.” 

Tonight's victory against Captial also marked an historic achievement for Shontz, as he needed only 11 points to reach 1,000 for his career. He reached that milestone by scoring 21 to go along with a career-high 13 rebounds and five assists 

Foul trouble played a critical part of the second half. Senior Maurice Haynes fouled out for the Blue Streaks, and Joe Meyer and Shontz each get whistled for four apiece. The John Carroll bench responded when it needed to. DeAndre Richardson (4-5 from the field, 11 points), Conor Tillow (seven points, five rebounds), and Kenny Janz (seven rebounds) all played a big part in the John Carroll win.. 

“I was really happy with how our bench played tonight,” said JCU Head Coach Mike Moran, whose team improved to 19-8. “Kenny, Tillow, and DeAndre had to give us big minutes tonight. They answered the call and did a great job picking up their teammates.”
 
For Capital (18-9), DJ Frazier and Scott Robertson led the way with 12 and 16 points, respectively. 

With the win tonight, Coach Moran's squad will travel to Marietta for the second time this season for the third meeting with the Pioneers in the 2011 season. After being defeated twice by the OAC regular season champions, JCU will be looking for a reverse of fate. 

“It's a battle every time we go down there,” said Shontz. “They gave us a heart-breaking loss (82-81) last weekend.” 

The title tilt will get underway at Marietta Ban Johnson Fieldhouse beginning at 7;30 p.m. on Saturday, february 26. the winner gets an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Championship. 

“We need to come out with a lot energy,” said Moran. “Hopefully we play one point better than we did last time.”