Coming off a loss to Mount Union, the Cardinals used the career nights of sophomore guard Brian Pollock and junior center Sean Cross to defeat Baldwin-Wallace (B-W) 94-84.
The first half was a close battle. The game was tied with 8:21 left when Pollock knocked down a pair of free throws to give Otterbein a 23-21 lead.
Otterbein never trailed for the remainder of the game.
"For the first time this year we have everyone fairly healthy and are still excited about playing," said head coach Dick Reynolds.
Pollock poured in a career-high 28 points, scoring 14 in each half. Cross also had a career-high night.
He did his work on the glass, pulling down 14 rebounds. Cross set the tone early in the game, getting ten of his boards in the first half.
Senior guard Adam Wells poured in 28 points while shooting 60 percent behind the arch.
"Being the only seniors, Ross and I try and play hard every time we step on the floor, and hopefully the younger kids take notice," said Wells.
Senior guard Ross Banaszak chipped in a healthy 21 points.
For the game, Otterbein shot 53 percent from the floor compared to Baldwin-Wallace's 45 percent.
Otterbein converted 55 percent of its three-point field goal attempts. B-W could not match that, only shooting 29 percent from downtown.
"Through all of our injuries, illness and adversity, the team has played hard all year," said Reynolds.
This Saturday, the Cardinals will travel to Tiffin to take on the Student Princes of Heidelberg.
Heidelberg boasts a record of 17-5 overall and 11-4 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). They are coming off an 84-72 win over John Carroll last night.
The two teams last met on Jan. 12, when the Student Princes handed Otterbein an 82-72 home loss.
Offensively, Heidelberg was led by seniors Andrew Lemmon and Brian Schmidt. The Student Princes shot 53 percent from the field and tallied 11 steals.
Otterbein was able to outscore Heidelberg 44-37 in the second half but was unable to dig themselves out of the 15-point halftime deficit.
Banaszak led the Cardinals offensively, scoring 19 points and hauling down eight rebounds. For the game, Otterbein shot 43 percent from the floor.
The Cardinals turned the ball over 17 times and only had 16 assists for the game. The Cardinals will face the Student Princes with a 5-16 overall record and 4-10 in the OAC.
"Heidelberg is a strong team and we have to combat their physical ability and shoot the ball very well," said Reynolds.
