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Photo credit: Jackson Harvey
Photo credit: Jackson Harvey
Posted: Feb 21, 2023

OLDEN, SCHMIDT LEAD ONU PAST HCC IN CCAC TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS

Photos Box Score

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – Career nights for Barik Olden and Tyler Schmidt helped the top-seeded Olivet Nazarene University men's basketball team take down the No. 8 Holy Cross Saints 88-64 in the quarterfinal round of the CCAC Tournament Tuesday night.

Olden, a senior combo guard from Groveland, Ill., filled in a career-high 25 points on 11-of-12 shooting. The senior captain scored 18 points in the first half alone and was perfect from the floor until the final minute of the game.

He was getting easy looks all night thanks to the stellar passing of Schmidt, who dished out a career-best 12 assists in the contest. Schmidt, who was recently named the NAIA National Player of the Week and seven-time CCAC Player of the Week, also dropped in 27 points of his own to lead all scorers. 

Contrary to the final score, the Tigers found themselves in a hole early. Holy Cross (14-15) found their shooting rhythm early on, knocking down four three-pointers over the first eight minutes to build a 23-17 lead.

But from that point on, ONU locked down on defense, limiting the Saints to just two made field goals over the next five minutes of the game. This allowed ONU to go on a game-altering 18-2 run, and when Griffin Andricks ended the spurt with back-to-back layups, the Tigers were up by double-digits.

The Saints were able to cut the lead down to seven near the midway point of the second half, but the defense prevailed as the Tigers would outscore Holy Cross 25-8 over the final 11 minutes of the game.

As a team, the Tigers shot 68-percent from the floor and converted on 6-of-11 of their three-point attempts. They were also a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line.

Landon Pflederer and Caleb Swearingen both hit a three on their way to seven points, each. Griffin Andricks and Braydon Flagg both chipped in eight points off the bench.

The win improves the Tigers to 23-6 overall and advances them to Thursday's semifinal round of the CCAC Tournament, where they will host the IU-South Bend Titans in McHie Arena.

GAME VITALS

Final: Olivet Nazarene 88, Holy Cross 64

Records: Olivet Nazarene 23-6 | Holy Cross 14-15

Location: McHie Arena | Olivet Nazarene University | Bourbonnais, Ill.

QUICK HITS

  • The win advances the Tigers to the CCAC Tournament Semifinals.

  • Barik Olden scored a career-high 25 points on 11-of-12 shooting.

  • Tyler Schmidt led all scorers with 27 and dished out a career-best 12 assists.

  • The Tigers shot 68-percent from the floor and hit 6-of-11 threes.

WHAT'S NEXT

The No. 1-seeded Tigers will host No. 4 IU-South Bend in McHie Arena on Thursday, Feb. 23 in the semifinal round of the CCAC Tournament. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. CST. 

 

--ONU—

 

*Contact: Evan Wild, Sports Information Director, ewwild@olivet.edu