WATCH POST-GAME
CEDARVILLE, OHIO –
Anthony Ruffolo scored 19 points to lead five players in twin figures as Cedarville beat Ohio Dominican, 80-69, in a G-MAC contest at the Callan Athletic Center.
Others in double digits included
Sam Johnson (15),
Will Gibson (14),
Jaylen Davis (12), and
Mikail Harmison (10) as the Yellow Jackets improved to 5-4 overall and 1-2 G-MAC.
The home side seized the lead for good with nine minutes left in the first half and methodically controlled the tempo the rest of the way.
A 32-27 halftime lead grew to as much as 68-53 with seven minutes remaining. The Panthers got within 73-66 at the 2:44 mark, but Ruffolo buried a triple and Johnson added a jumper to push the margin back out to 12 points.
Cedarville shot 54.5 percent from the field featuring a 61 percent accuracy in the second half on 17-of-28 shooting.
Quotable: Head Coach Rob Jones
"The guys were really attuned to the things we were trying to control on our end. The guys did a really good job! I wish we would have rebounded a little bit better, but I thought we did a terrific job on their shooters. We did a good job on (Elijah) Hinton in not allowing him to get so deep in his post catches. I was really proud of the effort.
"We were really pleased with five guys scoring in double figures. The other night we were a little one dimensional in how we were attacking. We're going to be at our best when we're attacking two sides of the floor, multiple guys are touching the ball, and we're sharing the ball."
Quotable: Sophomore forward Sam Johnson
"We have experience with them from last year, so just knowing their personnel, who their shooters are, and what guys want their back to the basket and score around there. Just sticking to our scout and preparing well for that. We talked about playing our game and not letting the opponent affect us so that's what we did today."
Quotable: Sophomore forward Will Gibson
"I think we prepared for this game. We knew it was going to be physical and they're a really good offensive team. It was really important for us to lock into the scout and all the details the coaches helped prepare us for."
Stinger Notes:
- Davis and Johnson grabbed a team-high six rebounds apiece.
- Gibson was good for five assists and Ethan Sellars added four.
- The Jackets made ten three-pointers for the fourth time this season.
- In the second half, CU hit 7-of-12 from beyond the arc and 7-of-8 free throws.
- Cedarville leads the all-time series, 72-27, which began in 1969-70.
- The two teams play again on February 5 in Columbus, Ohio.
