DEFIANCE, Ohio – A blistering start and 12-point halftime lead were squandered on Wednesday night by the Defiance College men's basketball team, as the Jackets saw Anderson use a last-second shot to complete a second-half comeback in the 70-69 setback.
After escaping a similar fate one week ago against Ohio Northern with a key bucket from Logan Wolfrum and a game-saving block by Anthony Barnum in the closing seconds to secure the 83-80 victory, Defiance saw the tables turned in the closing moments on Wednesday, with AU getting the key stop and score in the final two possession of the game.
It did not look like any late heroics would be needed early, as Mason Roth netted the game's first five points and Wolfrum knocked down a trifecta for an 8-0 cushion. Defiance used a pressing defense and a crisp offense to gradually extend the gap to 43-31 at the break.
Defiance assisted 10-of-19 hoops in the opening half, while shooting 52.8 percent and punished the Ravens for seven turnovers with a 14-2 edge in points off turnovers in the opening stanza.
The strong play did not carry into the second half for Defiance however, as Anderson stormed back with a 21-7 rally that put Defiance face-to-face with its first deficit of the contest, at 52-50 with 10:46 left in the game.
The Jackets fired back with nine-straight points, on a trey from Wolfrum and consecutive three-point plays from Kyle Tietje to take a 59-52 lead just 93 seconds later. A long range dagger by Travis Schomaeker pushed the gap to eight with 8:35 showing on the clock, capping a 12-point outburst by DC in the span of 2:21.
Anderson would not be denied however, as the Ravens hit right back with the next six points and steadily chipped the margin down to a single point on a three-point play with 2:28 to play. The neither side would score again until the final seconds, as Anderson pulled in a defensive rebound with 22 seconds left and got the game-winning layup from Jake Browne for the 70-69 lead with three seconds left.
Anderson led for only 19 seconds on the night but closed the gap in the final 20 minutes by shooting 60 percent from the floor in the final stanza. The Ravens also benefitted from a 20-9 edge on the glass in the second half and a 12-3 advantage off of turnovers after the break.
Wolfrum stuffed the box score in the losing effort with 12 points, seven rebounds, six assists, three steals and one block, while Kyle Tietje ended with 12 points, five helpers and two steals. Mason Roth reached double figures for the fifth time in as many collegiate outings with 15 and Schomaeker added eight points and a pair of thefts in eight minutes of action.
Defiance (2-3, 0-1 HCAC) will look to bounce back on Saturday, when it hosts Rose-Hulman (4-1, 0-0 HCAC) for a 3:00 pm tip. The game will follow the DC women's squad taking on Rose-Hulman in a 1:00 pm start and all fans will be admitted free with the showing of a 2011-2012 DC winter sports schedule card.