FOUR IN DOUBLE FIGURES AS ONU PICKS UP 20th WIN

MISHAWAKA, Ind. –  Tyler Schmidt led four Tigers in double figures as the Olivet Nazarene University men's basketball team picked up their 20th win of the season with an 82-73 road win over Indiana South Bend Wednesday evening at McKenna Arena.

Schmidt, the defending CCAC Player of the Week, finished 8-of-15 from the floor, including a perfect 8-for-8 performance from the free throw line to score a game-high 25 points. The Valparaiso, Ind., native has now scored 20 or more points in eight straight contests and is averaging 24.1 points per game on the season, the top scoring clip in the CCAC and the fourth-best mark in the nation.

He also had plenty of help. Griffin Andricks filled in 19 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting night. Sam Emich knocked down three triples on his way to 16 points while also bringing down a team-leading nine rebounds. Landon Pflederer netted 14.

After a back-and-forth first half that resulted in a 33-33 deadlock at halftime, the Titans (19-8, 14-5 CCAC) slowly took control in the second, building a 55-50 lead at the midway point of the final period. That was when Schmidt exploded for six straight points to retake the lead, and when Andricks knocked down a 3-pointer to make it a 9-0 ONU run, the Tigers led by four.

The two CCAC contenders traded baskets over the next three minutes, but a pair of Schmidt free throws and back-to-back layups from Andricks, with the second layup resulting in an and-one, the Tigers led by six. ONU would hold the lead from there on out.

Indiana South Bend cut the lead down to five with 1:14 to play, but Caleb Swearingen, Andricks, and Schmidt hit all of their free throws inside the final minute to lead the Tigers to the victory, their 20th of the season. ONU has now won 20 or more games in their last six seasons, all under Head Coach Nick Birkey.

The win moves the Tigers into second place in the CCAC standings with a 14-5 league record. They will close out the regular season with a game at Calumet Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. CST.

--ONU—

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