Box Score

HIRAM, Ohio – The Otterbein University men's basketball team dropped a close non-conference outing in its 2014-15 season debut Tuesday evening, coming up just short in an 87-83 loss at Hiram College.

The Cardinals will return home for a pair of weekend games to finish out the week, playing host in its annual Smokey Ballenger Tournament at the Rike Center. Otterbein opens against Houghton College (N.Y.) Friday at 8 p.m.

Hiram (2-0) and Otterbein traded leads early on in the game, with the host Terriers eventually stringing together some possessions and building a 10-point advantage, at 41-31, with 2:57 remaining before halftime.

Otterbein closed the first period strong, scoring the final six points before halftime and then using the momentum to regain the lead just minutes into the second half, on a three-pointer from sophomore Chase Moyer.

The Cardinals held their largest lead of the game, 64-57, with 8:55 remaining after a Bryan Mackenzie layup, but the Terriers countered with a quick 7-0 spurt of their own to draw even.

Hiram managed to build a six-point cushion as the game clock moved under 5:00 to play, but Otterbein hung close and had a chance to tie or take the lead after forcing a Hiram five-second call, on an inbounds attempt, with 22 seconds remaining.

An ensuing baseline jumper from Marc McCuen missed the mark, but the Cardinals grabbed an offensive rebound to give themselves another opportunity. Unfortunately, a potential go-ahead three-pointer from Moyer did not fall as the hosts ultimately prevailed.

Moyer finished with a career-high 17 points to lead four Cardinals in double figures, shooting 6-of-9 from the field and also handing out a game-high four assists. Freshman Matt Hughes scored 16 in his Otterbein debut while point guard Jake Phillis and Mackenzie totaled 14 and 13, respectively.

Both sides shot a near identical 55 percent from the field, but Hiram was able to make five-more attempts from behind the arc throughout. The Terriers received a game-high 19 from Kyle Deckerd, who connected on five of those trifectas.

Otterbein was outstanding from the free-throw line, making 18-of-21 attempts compared to just 19 of 29 for Hiram. The Cards also held a sizeable 44-26 advantage on points in the paint.