Box Score Yellow Jackets sting Marauders late for 68-65 winWILBERFORCE, Ohio- The Yellow Jackets of Cedarville University took advantage of a cold Central State offense to pull ahead late and win, 68-65, in Thursday's Inaugural Greene County Appreciation Night.
Central State got off to a hot start as a
Tre' Edwards three pointer gave CSU an early 12-5 lead at the 15:30 mark of the 1
st half. Cedarville managed to cut the deficit down, 15-14, by the 12 minute mark before CSU manufactured a 9-3 run. A good three pointer from
Akil Cornish put the Marauders up 8 with 6:29 left before halftime. The Marauders built their lead up to 11 before Cedarville ended the half on a 7-2 run and trailed 39-33 at the break.
CSU maintained a healthy lead throughout the first 15 minutes of the second half. Guard
Sterling Gilmore hit a three pointer to put the Marauders up, 59-52, with 6:11 to go. Cedarville's Easton Bazzoli quickly answered on the other end with a traditional three point play. JC Faubion added a free through and Patrick Bain hit from beyond the arc to tie the game, 59-59, with 4:50 left. Bazzoli later gave Cedarville its first lead, 63-62, with a tough make in the paint at the 3:21 mark. With points hard to come by down the stretch, Faubion hit a step back jumper to put the Yellow Jackets up, 66-62, with just 39 seconds left. CSU's Hosie Smith, Jr. responded on the other end with a three point make to pull CSU within 1. Unfortunately for CSU, Smith, Jr.'s make would be the only Marauder field goal made in the final 3:50 to play. After Bazzoli split a pair at the line, he made up for it on the defensive end by stealing the inbound pass with just 2.2 second left on the clock. Faubion made one of two free throws on the other end and Cedarville escaped with a three point victory.
In addition to CSU's shooting struggles down the stretch, the Marauders were outscored 14-6 in second chance points.
"In these last three games, we haven't made the plays necessary to win down the stretch," said CSU Head Coach
Joseph Price. "We are playing hard but we have to pay more attention to detail. What was most disappointing in tonight's loss was that we lost the rebound battle and Cedarville took full advantage. You can't give a team extra opportunities to score and Coach Estepp and his players did a great job of exploiting our lack of rebounding."
Despite just 4 points on the offensive end, Cedarville forward Robert Okoro accounted for a game high 12 rebounds including two crucial offensive rebounds in the final two minutes to help Cedarville control the clock. Bain and Faubion each finished with 17 points. Bazzoli had a solid all-around game with 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. The Yellow Jackets bolstered their season ledger to 8-9 with the victory.
Tre' Edwards paced the Marauder offense with 15 points. Smith, Jr. had 13 points, but battled through foul trouble throughout the evening. Losing their third straight game, Central State fell to 5-9 overall.
"We will come in tomorrow and watch some film and try to get better by seeing our mistakes," Price said. "We know that Coach Futrell and Wilberforce are focused on Monday's game and we have to be ready to play our brand of basketball if we want to come out on top."
The Marauders host Wilberforce University on Monday at 8 pm.
NOTES:
- Central State and Cedarville, separated by just 4.9 miles, celebrated Greene County Appreciation Night with all employees of Greene County gaining admission for $1.00.
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- Greene County Commissioner Alan Anderson recognized both schools at halftime for the important role each Universityplays within the community.
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- Xenia Mayor and CSU grad Marsha Bayless served as CSU's Honorary Coach.
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- Others in attendance included Xenia Councilman Mike Engle, representatives from the Dayton Fire Department and SIAC Commissioner Greg Moore.
To view all photos taken from Thursday's Greene County Appreciation Night, go to -Â
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