Box Score In front of a packed house at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center on a festive night celebrating JCU's successful fall sports season, the John Carroll University men's basketball team could not send fans home with a victory despite a spirited effort, falling to Mount Union in a hard-fought contest, 91-78.

The teams traded punches for the majority of the contest, but the Purple Raiders began to pull away in the second half. John Carroll kept it close, but Mount Union's lights-out shooting performance proved to be too much for the Blue and Gold.

The Purple Raiders shot 16-of-31 from behind the arc and 47.1 percent from the field overall. Nate Jacubec was the primary catalyst for Mount Union offense, nailing five of his six shots from behind the arc, finishing the night with 23 points.

Tim Ludlow (17), Danny Wallack (14), Jake Hollinger (12) and David Hendrickson (10) all wound up in double digits for the Blue and Gold, but John Carroll just could not match Mount Union's offensive onslaught.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair, but Mount Union began to assert control of the lead. Jacubec and Cody Dillon buried three-pointers in the first minute of the second, allowing the Purple Raiders to build up a significant lead.

The Purple Raiders extended their lead to 60-48 with 13:03 left, but the Blue Streaks battled back. John Carroll pickpocketed Mount Union on consecutive possessions and converted on opportunities under the basket, bringing the Blue Streaks within six with eight minutes to play.

The two teams went punch-for-punch on offense as the second half progressed. Mount Union landed more punches, as the Purple Raiders seemed to find slim openings in the JCU defense no matter how hard the Blue Streaks worked on defense. Mount Union held an 81-69 lead at the five minute mark, using offensive rebounds and drives to the lane to take the double-digit lead.

The Blue Streaks managed to hang around as the minutes ticked away. Jacubec connected on a three-pointer with 2:45 to play before Simon Kucharewicz reinvigorated his teammates and the JCU faithful with a slam dunk to bring JCU within 10 points, 84-74, with 2:32 to play.

But no matter what the Blue Streaks did on offense to narrow the lead, the Purple Raiders answered right back. At the 1:25 mark, as Mount Union took a timeout to set up their strategy for the remainder of the game, the Purple Raiders had an 85-78 advantage.

Forced to foul, the Blue Streaks sent Mount Union's Stevie Griffin and T.J. Gillespie to the line in Mount Union's next two possessions. Griffin and Gillespie buried all four shots, making the lead nearly insurmountable. Mount Union used a pair of steals to finish JCU off, as JCU's offense stalled in the final minute.

The loss marked JCU's second consecutive defeat and sent the Blue and Gold to 11-7 on the year and 5-6 in Ohio Athletic Conference play.

Mount Union roared out to a 7-0 start to start the contest. The Blue Streaks gradually narrowed the lead with an aggressive, full court press defense and a fast-paced offensive attack. The Blue and Gold took their first lead of the game midway through the first half, 21-19, on a 3-pointer by Ludlow.

The lead exchanged hands a number of times in the latter part of the second half, as each offense found space from behind the arc. Mount Union sank more of their opportunities, drilling 7-of-16 three-pointers, while JCU converted five of its 12 shots. This allowed the Purple Raiders to take a 38-36 lead into the locker room.

Ludlow drilled all three of his 3-point opportunities in the first stanza, invigorating the Blue Streaks offense at key points over the course of the opening half. He led JCU's shooters with 11 points in the first. No Purple Raiders reached double-digits in the first half, as Miles Griffin led Mount Union with eight points, including two three-pointers.

The Blue Streaks are back in action on Saturday at home against Muskingum at the DeCarlo Varsity Center. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m.