John Carroll checked one box Saturday by picking up its first conference victory of the year.

Tonight in Westerville, the Blue Streaks checked another box by winning on the road in league play for the first time.

Behind a career high 24 points from Connor Fitzgerald and a strong shooting night from three-point range, JCU prevailed by a 76-59 score over Otterbein.

Fitzgerald had 13 points by halftime as he was 5-7 from the field and 3-4 from three-point range in ten minutes off the bench.

He stayed hot in the second half, making 4-6 from the floor and duplicating his 3-4 effort from beyond the arc.

As a team, JCU was 13-28 (.464) from long range.

The Blue Streaks burst from the gate in the opening seven minutes. When Greg Parella canned a three ball at the 13:09 mark, John Carroll had pushed out to a 15-4 lead.

JCU would stretch the first half advantage to as many as 18 points, at 30-12 and 32-14.  But the host team did not go quietly, as the Cardinals closed the final 3:45 of the first half on a 13-3 run, cutting the Blue Streaks' lead to 35-27 as time expired.

The Blue Streaks again stretched their advantage to 18 points in the second half. Fitzgerald's fifth three-pointer of the night put John Carroll ahead 55-37 with 12:49 showing on the clock.

The Cardinals immediately responded with an 8-0 run, fueled by five points from Patrick Dallas.

Otterbein closed to within seven points at 60-53 when Jake Justice poured in a jumper with 5:55 remaining in the contest, but that would be as close as the home squad would get. The Blue Streaks finished the night on a 16-6 burst to secure the victory.

Fitzgerald's 24 points led the way for John Carroll (9-3, 2-3 OAC), which also got 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds from Ryan Berger. Reigning OAC and Jesuit Basketball National Player of the Week Jackson Sartain added 11 points, making 3-8 from long range.

Otterbein (4-8, 1-4 OAC) was led by 20 points from Mo Beavers.