Written Jan. 9, 2010 by Adam Prescott
WESTERVILLE, OHIO – Otterbein (4-10, 2-5 OAC), getting 29 points from senior guard Brian Pollock, glided to a 63-48 victory over Mount Union (5-9, 3-4 OAC) Saturday evening in the Rike Center.
The game remained close in the opening minutes, with Otterbein taking a 12-6 lead on a three-pointer from junior Nathan Edick at the 15:22 mark. The shot came off a pass from center Chris Davis after the sophomore had grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed free throw.
The Cards then took their first double-digit lead of the game, extending the advantage to 23-12 when Pollock connected on a three-pointer with 8:19 remaining before the break.
Mount cut into the lead slightly, but senior Cory Ratai tallied an old-fashioned three-point play after hauling in a fast break pass from Brice Rausch with just over four minutes remaining in the first half, putting Otterbein ahead 29-19.
OC would eventually take a 35-23 edge into halftime.
The Cards registered 16 second-chance points in the opening half compared to just two for the Purple and White.
Mount Union did not score from the field over the last 7:29 of the first half.
Otterbein stormed out of the locker room, as Pollock (7) and Edick (5) combined to score the game’s first 12 points of the second frame, widening the Cardinals margin to 46-23.
The Raiders would finally make a layup six minutes into the second half, ending a 13 minute draught without a field goal, dating back to the first half.
However, Mount Union was never able to make any serious push throughout the duration of the second half as OC secured a 63-48 victory.
Pollock led all scorers with a game-high 29 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Playing 39 minutes, he buried six three-pointers and was one rebound shy of a double-double.
Ratai did notch a double-double, scoring 13 points and hauling in 14 rebounds. Junior Nathan Edick, making his first start as a Cardinal, registered 12 points on a 5-of-11 effort from the floor.
Mount was led by ten points from Jimmy Wood.
Otterbein held a commanding 48-29 edge on the glass, and made 9-of-23 shots from beyond the arc. The Raiders connected on just 1-of-11 attempts from three-point range.
The Cards next travel to play Marietta on Wednesday, with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
