BALTIMORE – Behind a season-high 27 points from senior Nick Antolini (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon), Gettysburg College (6-1, 1-1 CC) made a run at one of the top programs in the country, but 15th-ranked Johns Hopkins University (7-0, 2-0 CC) retook the lead early in the second half and held off the hard-charging Bullets for a 72-66 decision in Centennial Conference men's basketball action inside Goldfarb Gymnasium Wednesday night.
 
Top Performers - Gettysburg
- Nick Antolini '20 – 27 points, 11-16 FG, 2-4 3FG, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
- Alex Leder '21 (Bethesda, Md./Bullis) – 18 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists
- Avery Close '21 (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) – 10 points, 3 rebounds
 
Top Performers – Johns Hopkins
- Ethan Bartlett – 16 points, 10 rebounds
- Tom Quarry – 12 points, 7 rebounds
- Harry O'Neil – 11 points
- Conner Delaney – 6 points, 4 rebounds, 11 assists
 
How It Happened…

• First Half
  • Close turned in the game's first bucket, but Johns Hopkins controlled the early going with 11-straight points on a dunk by Quarry and three consecutive three-pointers by Bartlett, O'Neill, and Quarry.
  • The Blue Jays went ice cold over the next 10 minutes, missing 17 of their next 18 attempts from the floor. Gettysburg took full advantage, erupting for an 18-2 run. Antolini fueled the effort with 11 of his 15 first-half points, while a pair of free throws by Leder made it 20-13 with 6:02 remaining.
  • Gettysburg was perfect (10-10) at the free throw line in the opening half and two more freebies by Leder set the advantage at 10 (30-20) late in the period. Johns Hopkins mounted a 7-0 run to cut the score to 30-27 heading into the break.
• Second Half
  • The Blue Jays carried the momentum into the second half with a 9-2 spurt and took a 36-32 lead on a steal and lay-in by Bartlett.
  • The Bullets refused to back down, keeping the margin to five or less and pulling to a 52-52 tie on a jumper by Antolini with 6:45 to play. On the ensuing Johns Hopkins' possession, an offensive rebound by Bartlett set the stage for a three-pointer by Joey Kern which put the hosts back in front to stay.
  • Antolini knocked down a three-pointer to pull Gettysburg within four (64-60) with just under three minutes to play.
  • As the game neared the final minute, Antolini blocked a three-pointer by Bartlett, but Quarry tracked down the carom and converted a lay-up. Two free throws by Kern set the score at 68-60 with 49 seconds left.
  • A lay-up by Williams and two buckets by Leder kept the Bullets in the hunt in the final seconds, but Johns Hopkins overcame its free throw struggles to knock down three of its final four attempts to seal the win.

 
By the Numbers

• Gettysburg forced Johns Hopkins into its worst shooting performances from the field (39.4 percent), at the three-point line (28.6 percent), and at the free throw line (52.6 percent) this season. The Bullets finished 23-of-59 (39 percent) from the field.
• The Blue Jays won the rebounding battle 46-39, while both teams posted positive assist-to-turnover ratios (GC 12-9/JH 17-8). Gettysburg has posted more assists than turnovers in six of its seven contests this season.
• Antolini finished just two points shy of his career high. He finished 11-of-16 from the floor, 2-of-4 from beyond the arc, and 3-of-3 at the charity stripe. The senior guard has posted at least 14 points in three of his four games since returning from injury and is averaging 17.3 points per game.
• Leder stretched his streak of double-figure efforts to seven with his second-best scoring effort as a Bullet. The junior also dished out at least four assists for the sixth time this season and leads the team with 4.4 assists per game.
• Gettysburg saw its best start to a season in 19 years come to an end. The Bullets reeled off an 8-0 mark to open the 2000-01 campaign, which ended with 20 wins and the program's first-ever Centennial Conference championship.

 
Where the Series Stands
Johns Hopkins picked up its sixth-straight win over the Bullets. The Blue Jays' previous five wins before Wednesday came by an average of 19.2 points per game. Gettysburg remains ahead in the all-time series 52-41.
 
Next Up
Gettysburg faces off with the top-ranked team in the country in No. 1 Swarthmore College (7-0, 2-0 CC) this Saturday, Dec. 7, at 3 p.m. Swarthmore, which survived an upset scare against Ursinus College 88-86 Wednesday night, has won the last four meetings with the Bullets.