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Watch Phillis Game-Winner

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The Otterbein men's basketball team snapped its seven-game losing skid in dramatic fashion Saturday afternoon, using another game-winning three-pointer from guard Jake Phillis to defeat visiting Muskingum University, 76-75, in front of an energetic Rike Center crowd.
 
Otterbein (4-15, 2-10 OAC) sweeps the season series with the Muskies as a result of the second-straight intense finish between the schools. Otterbein won the first matchup, 93-89, in double overtime earlier this season in New Concord.
 
The Cardinals came out with a bang despite missing starters Grant Fenner and Michael Howard for a second-straight game, opening on an 11-0 run to force a Muskingum timeout at the 16:46 mark.
 
Otterbein continued to lead throughout most of the first half, but the Muskies slowly chipped away and took their first lead of the game, on a pair of free throws from Jacob Geller, with 3:40 remaining before intermission.
 
Muskingum (5-14, 2-10 OAC) later took a slim 41-39 lead into halftime after a layup from Otterbein's Matt Hughes capped the first 20 minutes of scoring. Hughes was tied for a game-high 11 points at the break as the Cards held a 20-12 edge in the paint.
 
A bucket from senior Marc McCuen quickly tied the game to begin the second half, but Muskingum answered with an 11-4 spurt to open a 52-45 lead, its largest of the game, by the 13:57 mark.

 

Otterbein stayed close and eventually erased the lead, taking a 63-61 advantage on a corner three-pointer from freshman Ryan Karapas with 5:52 to play. The game would soon see ties at 63, 65 and 67 before the Muskies managed five points in a row to open a 72-67 cushion with just over three minutes to play.
 
Otterbein appeared to be in some trouble when trailing 74-70 with 45 seconds to go, but Muskingum missed two free throws and Bryan Mackenzie quickly converted an old-fashioned three-point play on the other end. Muskingum then led 75-73 after splitting another set of free throws and Phillis just missed his first go-ahead three-point attempt with 11 seconds left.
 
The Muskies had another chance to ice the game with 7.4 seconds on the game clock, but missed both free throws and then Joshua Keyes, who maneuvered in to grab a nice offensive rebound, accidentally stepped on the baseline.
 
That turnover set Phillis up for redemption, driving the court and burying a contested 30-footer for the win. He was just 3 of 14 from the field and 0 of 7 from three-point range prior to that moment.
 
"I didn't shoot well all game," said Phillis, who also hit a game-winner to beat Denison (69-67) earlier in the year. "It was a great team effort today and we rode Matt Hughes from start to finish. I just needed to do something late to help make up for my play and help this team."
 
Head Coach Brian Oilar boasted about his team's perseverance afterwards, citing the adversity the group has experienced through some tough losses recently.
 
"These guys have been battling all year," Oilar said. "I couldn't be more proud of them because they do things the right way and carry themselves as great guys. Good things tend to happen when you act in that manner. We got a shot to fall at the end and managed to get the outcome we have been working for."
 
Hughes was fantastic for the second game in a row, finishing with 22 points and a game-high 10 rebounds to pace the team throughout. He scored a career-high 28 on Wednesday at Ohio Northern.
 
"I was just taking what the defense gave me," Hughes explained. "I started to make a few shots and that opened up some things for my teammates. We were able to make some key shots in those opportunities."
 
Phillis, who grew up not far from Muskingum in nearby Zanesville, finished with 15 points while Mackenzie scored 14 to go along with six rebounds. Otterbein went 73 percent from the free-throw line as a team while the Muskies went just 15 of 26 (.577). Both sides combined to go 12 of 47 from behind the arc.
 
Jarrell Marsh, who recently scored 41 against nationally-ranked Marietta College, led Muskingum with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting.
 
Otterbein returns to action next week with a pair of road games, traveling to undefeated and fourth-ranked John Carroll on Wednesday before a weekend tilt at Baldwin Wallace.