BEXLEY, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University men's basketball team took down Capital University in an Ohio Athletic Conference by a final score of 73-67 in the Performance Arena inside the Capital Center.
BW (9-4, 4-2 OAC) was led by junior All-OAC guard Anthony Mazzeo (North Canton/Massillon Jackson) who tied for the team lead with 17 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Sophomore All-OAC guard Drew Wennes (Huron) and junior guard Jake Snyder (Akron/Archbishop Hoban) also tied for the team lead with 17 points.
Capital (8-6, 3-4 OAC) was led by junior forward Griffin Doseck and freshman forward Ryan Suever who each had 13 points. Sophomore guard Kaleb Crawford also added 10 points.
The scoring started from the jump with senior guard Shane Zalba (Mentor) making a layup on the first possession. But on the other end the Comets would respond with a three to take the early lead. The scoring stopped for nearly three minutes until Mazzeo scored five quick points to give the Yellow Jackets a 7-3 lead. The teams continued to go back and forth but Capital started to separate getting their biggest lead of the game with 10:26 remaining as they went up 19-13. BW began to roar back with a 9-0 run as Mazzeo and Wennes combined for three threes. The Comets regained a three-point lead off a three from Suever with 4:52 remaining. Over the rest of the half, the Yellow Jackets went on a 12-1 run that ended with a layup from sophomore forward Rob Watson III (Sagamore Hills/Nordonia). BW entered the half with a 36-28 lead. The high scorer for the Yellow Jackets in the first half was Mazzeo who had 15 points at the break.
The second half started much like the first with the team trading baskets in the beginning. However, it was Capital who got the lead off a big run. The Comets went on a 10-2 run to take a 43-42 lead with 14:11 left in the game. Wennes got BW the lead back on the next possession with a turnaround jump shot. The teams continued to battle in the close game, however, the Yellow Jackets never gave the lead up again. The Comets came roaring back a few times but could only manage to tie things up. Snyder played a big role in the second half as he scored 14 points. Snyder hit a late three and a free throw to secure the game for BW as they left with a six point win at 73-67.
The Yellow Jackets return to the court on Wednesday, January 19th when they host crosstown rival John Carroll University in an OAC agame in the Ursprung Gymnasium inside the Lou Higgins Center at 7:00 p.m.