PHOTO GALLERY

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – It was a scene in the Rike Center for another instant classic between Otterbein and Capital, as the Cardinals overcame some initial adversity to outlast their rival in front of more than 1,400 fans.

Otterbein, winning the Roush Auto Rivalry Showdown (80-70) for a second time in three tries, beats Capital on its home floor for the first time in over a decade and while moving to 4-2 on the year.

EARLY CHALLENGES:
A visiting Capital squad (urged by a nice traveling crowd) came out motivated behind enemy lines. The aggressive Comets opened leads of 22-12 and then 30-16 after Ryan Roth nailed a shot from Polaris Parkway…

HUGE RESPONSE:
One of the bigger makes happened just seconds after that heave, though, as Otterbein newcomer Julian Heckman (playing in his first rivalry game) nailed a corner triple at the other end to halt the visitor momentum. That shot began a wild 18-2 run that propelled the home side back in front (34-32) with a few minutes remaining in the half…

HALFWAY POINT:
Capital regathered itself and took a 39-38 lead into the break after a pair of ties and lead changes in the closing minutes of the frame.

BACK AND FORTH DRAMA:
The second half featured nine lead changes… with neither side leading by more than five points until the closing minutes of the game. Capital put the home crowd on guard by taking a 66-62 edge with 4:30 showing on the clock, before another huge answer from Otterbein…

HANNAH'S HIT:
Just 17 seconds after going down by two possessions, stretch forward Alex Hannah confidently rose up and buried a trifecta from the left corner to get his team back within one point. It sparked a 10-0 run that proved to be a massive difference maker…

CLOSING TIME:
Otterbein suddenly found itself up 72-66 with a minute to play and sealed the deal. The Cards made all eight free-throw attempts over the last 66 seconds of the night sandwiched around a timely layup from Hannah.

STAT CHECK:

• Cam Evans took center stage (yet again) with a new career-high 29 points, while matching Dallas Patrick for a team-high seven rebounds.
   
• Hannah also enjoyed a career-night offensively with 22 points on a ridiculously efficient 9-of-11 shooting. He dished out a team-best four assists along with Heckman, who scored 12 himself.
   
• Otterbein worked hard getting into the paint and ultimately shot 20 of 25 at the charity stripe, while Capital went just 6 of 11 at the line.
   
• The Comets shot 51 percent as a team from the field despite an 8-of-27 output from behind the arc. Capital also delivered a sizeable 35-10 edge in bench scoring, sparked by a combined 23 from Roth and Ryan Suever.
   
• Capital committed twice as many turnovers with an 18-9 disparity.

 
LOOKING AHEAD:
Otterbein will have the middle of next week off to focus on final exams before heading west to Muskingum for a conference matchup on Saturday afternoon.