Box Score
Milwaukee, Wis. – Hosting the 2009-10 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) men’s basketball championship game, the Cardinal Stritch University Wolves suffered a tough loss, to the Judson University Eagles, 70-65, on Saturday evening.
The opening period of play was a battle throughout and the Wolves found themselves down two, 34-32, heading into the break. The first half wasn’t pretty as Stritch shot 38 percent from the floor while Judson shot 52 percent. What made things tougher was the Wolves, the top three-point shooting team in the nation, hit on just two attempts from beyond the arc.
Stritch would find itself down in the opening minutes of the second half, but would battle back to tie the game, for the eighth time, at 45-45. Between the 12-minute mark and the 2:30 mark, the Wolves would hold the lead. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be a lead they could hold.
Judson’s Ben Rayhorn (Dakota, Ill.), would hit a jumper to tie the game at 65-65 and then hit on two free throws, after being fouled by the Wolves Trey Triplett (Lisle, Ill.), giving the Eagles a 67-65 lead. In a game in which the lead changed hands 10 times, the lead wouldn’t change after Rayhorn’s shots.
The Wolves would have six more chances to take the game back over, but it wasn’t meant to be as they missed their last five shots and had a turnover.
The Eagles’ Anthony Ahlers (Magnolia, Ill.) would seal the game with two free throws, handing the Wolves a 70-65 loss.
It was a tough overall night for the Wolves as their usual scorers were frustrated often. Kody Braddix (Glendale, Ariz.) led all Stritch players with 16 points while Brandon D’Amico (Geneva, Ill.) had 13 points. Nate Lemmens (Rhinelander, Wis.) and Navjot Singh (Mundelein, Ill.) each added 11 points apiece.
Rayhorn would lead all scorers with 27 points in the game.
The loss for the Wolves ends the nation’s best winning streak at 19 and marks their first loss since Dec. 18, 2009. Stritch’s record now moves to 27-5 while Judson goes to 16-13 overall.
Despite the loss, the Wolves’ season has a chance to continue as the NAIA will prepare for their national tournament. Selections to this year’s tournament will be announced on Wednesday, Mar. 3.