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CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Otterbein University men's basketball squad kicked off its season with a split at the Case Western Reserve University Tournament, falling to Kenyon College on day one but rebounding to defeat Anderson University (Ind.) on Saturday.
The Cardinals dropped a 93-73 contest to the Lords on Friday evening, but regrouped to tally its first win of the young season by tackling Anderson, 80-68, on day two.
Otterbein trailed Kenyon by just two points nearly nine minutes into Friday's affair, but a quick 9-0 Kenyon run spanning the next two and a half minutes put the Lords on top, 23-12.
A three-pointer from Matt McCollister brought the Cardinals within 23-17, but another 9-0 spurt from Kenyon widened the gap to 32-17.
The Lords eventually took a 38-25 lead into intermission and maintained a double-digit advantage over the first nine minutes of the second period.
A pair of free throws from freshman Jake Phillis brought the Cardinal deficit to single digits at the 11:02 mark, but Otterbein would get no closer the rest of the way as Kenyon embarked on a 24-9 run to put the game away.
Phillis led the Cardinals with 19 points off the bench in his collegiate debut, shooting 6 of 14 from the field and making all but one of his six free-throw attempts. Sophomore Jake Bischoff accounted for 17 points while redshirt freshman Matt Rhodes, also playing his first game in an Otterbein uniform, contributed 14 off the bench.
Ikenna Nwadibia and Jonathan Amador combined to score 53 of the 93 points for Kenyon, which shot .507 from the floor compared to Otterbein's .358 mark. The Lords held a 42-20 edge in points in the paint.
The Cardinals fell behind, 9-4, to Anderson on day two, but a layup from freshman Grant Fenner capped a quick 8-0 run to put Otterbein ahead 12-9 at the 13:42 mark. The Cards later opened a 29-20 lead down the stretch of the first half before settling for a slim 34-33 halftime lead.
Otterbein extended the margin to nine, 45-36, early in the second half before blowing the game open with a 20-8 run spanning the next five minutes to seize a 65-48 lead.
Anderson would not get within single digits the remainder of the way as the Cardinals secured their first win of the young season.
Bischoff turned in another solid showing, shooting 6 of 12 from the field and burying four three-pointers to tie for a game-high 18 points. He was named to the All-Tournament team as a result of his performances.
Phillis and Rhodes scored 14 and 12, respectively, for an Otterbein group that shot .550 from the field and won the rebounding battle, 36-25.
Max Mollaun matched Bischoff with 18 points on the Anderson side, while Nate Gross added 16 of his own.
Otterbein will have the middle of the week off before hosting its annual Smokey Ballenger Classic Nov. 22-23 in the Rike Center. The Cards open Friday against Ohio Christian University at 8 p.m.
