TIGERS STUMBLE AT HOME AGAINST ST. FRANCIS

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – After battling back to make it a one-point game in the final stretch of the second half, the Olivet Nazarene University men's basketball team let the game slip away from them in the final minutes in a 74-62 home loss to St. Francis Thursday evening.

ONU got out to a great start behind the stellar play of Caleb Corro. The redshirt-junior guard filled in nine points in the first eight minutes to single-handedly outscore the Fighting Saints and lead the Tigers to an early 13-8 advantage.

The first half slowly dissolved into a defensive battle with the Tigers sitting at a 31-30 disadvantage at halftime, but Daniel Murphy quickly gave ONU the lead with a driving layup to open the second-half scoring. USF (7-1, 3-0 CCAC) had the response with a 3-pointer to reclaim the lead and swiftly built the lead up.

An ONU cold streak from the floor allowed the Fighting Saints to extend their lead to multiple possessions, and a USF 3-pointer put the Tigers in a 48-41 hole with 13 minutes to play. The Tigers profited off the play, however, with USF getting tagged with a technical on the made basket. Corro knocked down the two gifted free throws which sparked an 8-2 ONU run.

Caleb Swearingen and Corro knocked down back-to-back deep-range shots to cut the deficit down to one. The Fighting Saints refused to relinquish the lead but the Tigers hung with them, with an Eli Edwards free throw and a Luke Braman dunk on consecutive plays keeping ONU within one point at 53-52 at the midway point of the second.

But the Tigers could not get over the hump as USF would go on a 10-0 run over to put the game out of reach. When Swearingen finally snapped the near-six minute scoring drought with a jumper, ONU was in a nine-point hole. USF hit their free throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.

The Tigers shot well overall, especially from 2-point range, shooting at a 51-percent clip. That was actually better than the Saints' 47.3 percent mark. But St. Francis made all the difference with their second unit, outscoring the Tigers 17-0 in bench points.

Corro led all scorers with 21 points. Swearingen and Murphy both reached double figures as well with 15 and 14, respectively. Edwards and Braman both chipped in six points each.

The Tigers will host Moody Bible Tuesday evening at 6 p.m.

--ONU—

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