November 27

Johnson Named as HCAC Player of the Week
GREENWOOD, Ind. – C.J. Johnson scored 28 points and pulled down four rebounds to help Defiance secure an 87-82 overtime victory at Heidelberg on Tuesday and was tabbed as the Heartland Conference Player of the Week as announced by the league office on Monday afternoon.

The junior guard sparked Defiance to the 12-point comeback victory by scoring 22 of his game-high 28 points in the second half of the Yellow Jackets’ overtime win over Heidelberg in DC’s only game of the week.

After the Jackets had limped to a nine-point deficit at the half while shooting only 35 percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, Johnson opened the second half on fire. The Toledo, Ohio native set the tone for the comeback by scoring the first 10 points of the half for DC as the Jackets sank eight-of-13 shots to open the second frame.

The barrage trimmed the gap to five points and after the teams traded hoops over the next few possessions, Johnson buried back-to-back treys to cut the Heidelberg lead to just one point with 13:36 to play. Johnson then completed the comeback with a layup, claiming a 55-54 edge for Defiance.
Johnson is averaging 12.7 points in DC's first three games.
For the game, Johnson poured in 28 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the floor and went five-of-nine from beyond the arc while also pulling in four rebounds.

The weekly honor is the first in the career of Johnson who is averaging 12.7 points per game while shooting 41.7 percent from long distance over DC’s first three games.

Defiance (2-1) will begin the HCAC portion of its schedule on Wednesday night inside the Weaner Community Center when it takes on Manchester (4-0) at 7:30 pm. The game will be aired live on 105.7 FM with Tom Jeffery calling the action.

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