The first half looked hopeless, the second half hopeful. but in the end, a furious rally fell short as the John Carroll University men's basketball team dropped a 98-85 decision to the first place Capital University Crusaders on Saturday afternoon in Bexley, Ohio.

The first half belonged to the Crusaders, with Capital building their advantage to as high as 29 points. The Blue Streaks cut the lead to 25 to make the score 61-36 at the halftime break.

Jackson Sartain led the Blue Streak offense in the opening 20 minutes, scoring 13 points and shooting 5-6 from the field. Emil Hess also chipped in seven points.

John Carroll seemed to hit its stride in the second half. After the Crusaders took their largest lead of the game (30), the Blue Streaks would answer back with 28-11 run to cut the Crusader lead to ten points with 7:50 remaining in regulation.

21 of the 28 John Carroll points during that run resulted from shots beyond the arc. Sartain made four of them, while Hippler, Jimmy Berger, and Connor Fitzgerald knocked down the other three.

After the teams exchanged points, Hippler drained another three ball to cut the Crusader lead to the lowest it has been since the first half, 86-78, with just over five minutes remaining and put the Blue Streaks within striking distance.

JCU was still within eight points at 93-85 with 2:42 remaining following a Jimmy Berger three ball, but those would be the final JCU points. Capital sealed the win with three free throws down the stretch and a lay-up.

Sartain and Hippler both tied their career bests in scoring. Sartain, who led the team in points, finished with 30, while Hippler followed with 16. Sartain also finished the game shooting 8-10 from beyond the arc and 11-15 from the field overall.

With the win, its 12th in a row, Capital improved 13-2 overall and 8-0 in the OAC.  John Carroll drops to 6-9 overall and 2-6 in league play.

The Blue and Gold will next host local OAC rival Baldwin Wallace (10-5, 4-4 OAC) on Wednesday, January 16. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.