THE NO. 19 TIGERS EARN A HARD-FOUGHT ROAD WIN OVER NO. 22 IUSB, 78-74

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The No. 19 Olivet Nazarene University traveled across the border and played a strong No. 22 Indiana University-South Bend side inside the Student Activities Center on Thursday night.  The Tigers handed the Titans their second home loss of the season winning, 78-74. 

Tyler Schmidt provided the early offense for the Tigers as he dropped in a layup three seconds into the game.  With the Titans up 5-2, Schmidt and Griffin Andricks knocked down threes on back-to-back possessions and led 8-7.  The two teams played a tight half throughout as neither team could distance themselves from each other until the Tigers grabbed the momentum.  With IUSB up 16-15, Barik Olden made a layup and Landon Pflederer buried a three making the score, 20-16.  The Titans cut the Tiger lead to one in the next possession as they hit a three making the score, 20-19. 

Four the next five minutes, the two teams went back-and-forth as both teams traded shots.  With the Tigers up 32-31, Schmidt and Alex Gross both marked layups.  ONU took its biggest lead at 36-31.  The Titans then fought back and deadlocked the game at 38 with 2:50 left in the half. 

In a half that featured 14 lead changes as the Tigers took a 40-38 lead going into the half.  The Tigers scored 22 points in the paint and shot 58% from the field. Gross led the Tigers with 12 points and Schmidt followed with 11, while Olden led the team with seven boards.   

Halftime: No. 19 Olivet Nazarene 40, No. 22 IU-South Bend 38

The Tigers jumped on the board first in the second half as Gross and Andricks dropped in layups to make the score, 44-38.  The Titans then went on a 10-1 run as they took their largest lead at 49-45. The Tigers countered that Titan run with Caleb Swearingen and Olden made field goals and tied the game at 49.  The Titans kept up the pace and continued to lead by five at 56-51 until Schmidt and Plfederer combined to go on a 7-0 run and ONU retook the lead at 58-56. 

The two teams then saw three ties in the next three minutes of the game until the Tigers grabbed some momentum.  At 64 all, four points from Schmidt and a three by Caleb Corro opened up a 71-64 ONU lead. In the waning minutes of the game, the Tigers saw their seven-point lead dwindle down to one with 45 ticks left at 75-74.

The Tigers knocked in their free throws in the final 45 seconds of the games as they earned a 78-74 victory over the Titans of IU-South Bend. 

GAME VITALS

Final: No. 19 Olivet Nazarene 78, No. 22 IU-South Bend 74

Records: No. 19 Olivet Nazarene: 22-3 (16-1 CCAC) | IU-South Bend: 18-4 (13-2 CCAC)

Location: Student Activities Center | Indiana University-South Bend | South Bend, Ind.

QUICK HITS

• Gross led the Tigers with 24 points (11-for-13 shooting), 11 boards, three assists, and four blocks.
• Schmidt followed with 22 points and five rebounds. 
• Pflederer contributed 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting from behind the arc. 
• Olden followed with eight rebounds. 
• The Tigers shot 80% (16-for-20) from the charity strike. 
• The game saw 18 lead changes and 14 ties.
• ONU outrebounded IUSB, 34-28. 

WHAT'S NEXT?

The No. 19 Tigers return to McHie Arena for the first time since Saturday, January 22nd as they host the Crimson Wave of Calumet College of St. Joe, on Monday, February 7th.  Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

--ONU—

*Contact: Sam Viebrock, Sports Information Director, stviebrock@olivet.edu