BOX SCORE
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Capital University's men's basketball team, ranked eighth in the nation, outscored Heidelberg College 37-15 over the closing 15 minutes of the first half and went on to post an 85-53 victory Wednesday at The Capital Center.
With the win, the Crusaders improved to 13-1 (6-1 Ohio Athletic Conference), while the Student Princes dropped to 5-9 (2-5 OAC).
Heidelberg took a 10-5 lead on a three-pointer by Jake Hessey, but the Crusaders took control after that, as a 12-3 run capped by a pair of Casey Brown (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Ready HS) baskets.
Another 13-3 spurt later in the half, featuring three-pointers by senior guards Jamie Yoder (West Holmes, Ohio/West Holmes HS) and Ryan Wood (Pickerington, Ohio/Pickerington Central HS) gave Capital a 30-17 lead with four minutes to go. The Crusaders stretched the lead to as many as 19 in the half and led 42-25 at the break.
A 14-4 run by the Crusaders over a five minute stretch early in the second half bumped the lead up to 25 at 59-34 after another three-pointer by Wood, and Capital led by as many as 33 late in the game.
"This is a tough league and you're not always going to get games like this," said Damon Goodwin, Capital's head coach. "It was nice that we were able to get everyone in and share some time. We outrebounded Heidelberg and took care of the basketball, and that's something to build on going into the weekend."
Wood connected on 4-of-5 shots to score a game-high 13 points, while Brown posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore forward Adam Johns (St. Marys, Ohio/Memorial HS) came off the bench to score 10 points and grab eight rebounds, while senior forward Quintin Mitchell (Toledo, Ohio/Libbey HS) had eight points and eight rebounds off the bench as well.
Overall, Capital's bench outscored Heidelberg's 46-10, and the Crusaders had a 50-37 advantage in rebounds. Fourteen players cracked the scoring column for Capital, as the Crusaders shot 31-of-60 (51.7 percent) from the floor for the game.
The Crusaders return to action Saturday night as part of a doubleheader with the women's team at OAC rival Otterbein College. The women, who defeated Heidelberg 76-63 tonight, play at 5:30 p.m., while the men follow with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff in Westerville.