John Carroll men's basketball rolls past Marietta for 11th straight win
Feb. 4—The John Carroll men's basketball express kept rolling Feb. 4.
Marietta — a perennial Division III power that was in the final four a season ago — was again no match against the No. 7-ranked Blue Streaks in an 89-75 victory on senior day.
With the win, JCU improved to 19-2 and 13-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference — one game in front of second-place Mount Union (19-2, 12-2) — and secured its 11th straight victory.
Five players were in double-figures scoring, led by Lake Catholic grad Luke Frazier's 23 points. Luke Chicone (Mentor) added 15 points, five assists and two steals, Jerry Higgins (VASJ) had 12 points and Will Yontek 10.
John Carroll's Luke Frazier (Lake Catholic) had a team high 23 points vs. Marietta Feb. 4. (Tim Phillis ??
Perhaps the most complete performance of the game belonged to JCU's Henry Raynor. The freshman post in 23 minutes scored 16 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked six shots.
It's been a steady season for the 6-foot-7 Raynor, who was instrumental in his team's 74-72 win over Mount Union on Jan. 25 with 14 points and 15 rebounds.
Henry Raynor dunk and it's @JCUMensHoops 82, Marietta 61 @jcusports pic.twitter.com/B3NLmgFhCv
— Mark Podolski (@mpodo) February 4, 2023
"Our offense starts with our defense," said Raynor, who tied his personal high of six blocks, doing it in high school at St. Ignatius against St. Edward. "When we're playing good defense, (opponents) can't stop us on offense. Contesting every shot, rebounding, I'm doing anything I can to help my teammates."
One of JCU's first signature wins of the season was Dec. 17 at Marietta, when it rolled, 95-73. This one was closer, at least for a half.
Five minutes in, the Pioneers led, 12-10, on a Cooper Parrott 3-pointer, and the game settled into a back-and-forth affair in the first two minutes.
In the final five minutes of the first half, JCU separate itself a bit when Chicone — who made three first-half 3s — connected from long distance for a 40-34 advantage. A Higgins shot in the lane made it 42-34.
A Raynor layup push the lead again to eight until David Sanford's 3 made it 44-39 at the break.
Frazier had 12 first-half points, with Chicone adding 11 and Higggins nine.
Marietta (13-8, 8-6) stayed within striking distance for the first seven minutes of the second half, but JCU slowly wore down the Pioneers.
Two free throws by Raynor, a layup by Yontek and a 3 by Frazier during a five-minute stretch extended the lead to 70-54 and the Blue Streaks never looked back.
"I told the guys at halftime to put all your energy on the defensive end," said JCU coach Pete Moran. "I don't care what you do on the offensive end, just get stops. That's when we're at our best, when we get stops, and get rebounds."
The Blue Streaks shot nearly 50 percent from the floor (34 of 69 for 49.3 percent) and made 8 of 17 from 3-point range. They also connected on 13 of 15 from the free-throw line.
It's now a four-game regular season for JCU, which next hosts Otterbein on Feb. 8. After that contest, it's three straight road games against Ohio Northern, Baldwin Wallace and Wilmington. If they win out, the Blue Streaks will be the OAC regular-season champion and the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament.
"We can't take anyone lightly, can't afford to drop a game and we all know that," said Chicone. "That's the big thing moving forward."
Or as Moran put it: "I told the guys, it's like the old song, 'The Gambler.' If I have a stack of chips, we're all in. I think the guys are locked in and we just need to continue this momentum."
PHOTOS: John Carroll vs. Marietta men's basketball, Feb. 4, 2023
