DC Lets One Slip Away for First Road Loss

CINCINNATI – Defiance suffered a setback in its quest for the HCAC crown, taking its first road defeat of the season on Saturday. The Jackets rallied from a six-point deficit at the half to lead by seven with eight minutes to play, before Mount St. Joseph stormed back for the 70-63 win.

Anthony Pettaway turned in his second strong performance in as many outings, posting 21 points and 14 rebounds in 36 minutes of work and C.J. Johnson managed 19 points despite only shooting two-of-nine from long range.

The three-point shooting woes carried over to the rest of the team, as the Jackets hit only five-of-25 attempts from beyond the arc for a frigid 20 percent.

The Mount did the majority of its damage from a few feet closer, sinking 20 free throws in 30 attempts for the game. Defiance did little to counter, getting to the line only nine times and making just two.

Saturday’s game was one with many ups and downs for both sides, with the first coming via a 17-4 MSJ rally to turn a 13-13 tie into a 30-17 advantage. A Lion reserve sparked the rally, as Shawn Finamore came off the bench to drain three treys during the stretch for nine of his 11 points in the game.

The two teams would trade buckets over the next several minutes with the lead remaining at a comfortable spread for MSJ at 34-22. Defiance would finally respond, closing the half on a 10-4 rally and drawing within six points at the break, 38-32.

Bryan Post started the second stanza with a basket and two-straight Pettaway layups completed the DC comeback, tying the score at 38-38. Defiance would then take a 45-40 lead on a trey from Anthony Jackson to finish what ended up being a 23-6 DC surge during a span of 8:34 dating back to the final 3:21 of the opening period.

The Jackets then turned to Pettaway and the six-foot, eight-inch center responded by pushing DC’s lead out to seven on three different possessions over the next several minutes, with the last coming with 8:04 to play.

Each time Defiance seemed poised to put the game out of reach, a scrappy MSJ club would answer. The Lions finally battled even at 58-58 with 3:21 to play, before a devastating string of seven-straight second-chance points by the Lions gave them a 65-58 lead. DC had no time to recover from the late 7-0 spurt and ended up taking the 70-63 defeat.

Defiance (14-6, 9-2 HCAC) will have a bye on Wednesday and a full week to prep for its next road challenge on Saturday at Rose-Hulman (9-11, 5-6 HCAC).