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The Capital University men's basketball team enters an important week featuring one showdown for first place and one game to be televised on tape delay.
The Crusaders (11-4 overall, 8-0 Ohio Athletic Conference) host second-place Marietta, which stands one game behind Capital in the conference standings, on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Capital Center. On Saturday, the Crusaders visit Baldwin Wallace for a 4 p.m. contest, which is scheduled to be televised that night at 9 p.m. on Sports Time Ohio (STO).
Capital enters the week following a pair of road wins. The Crusaders, who have now won nine straight games, defeated Muskingum 90-62 on Wednesday before holding on for a 69-64 triumph at Ohio Northern on Saturday.
Against Muskingum, Capital shot 56.1 percent from the field and 13-of-26 (50 percent) from 3-point range. Senior forward Spencer Niekamp (St. Henry, Ohio) led the Crusaders with 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting to go along with six rebounds. Seven other players tallied at least six points in the affair, paced by sophomore forward Daniel Ocke (Sidney, Ohio), who contributed with nine off the bench.
Capital continued its winning streak on Saturday in Ada, jumping out to a big first-half lead before seeing it dwindle in the closing moments, when the team knocked down 7-of-8 free throws to preserve the lead and post the victory. A 17-4 run starting midway through the first half helped the Crusaders stretch their lead to 42-26 by halftime. Capital extended its lead to 19 just over six minutes into the second half before the Polar Bears inched back into the contest.
Niekamp and senior guard Tim Congrove (Circleville, Ohio) totaled 17 points apiece to lead the Crusaders. Junior forward Jared Cashen (Norwalk, Ohio) contributed with 10 points, and senior wing Michael Sommer (Celina, Ohio) recorded eight points and a team-best nine rebounds.
Marietta (11-4, 7-1) enters the week having won three of its last four games, including a pair of home affairs last week. The Pioneers closed the week Saturday with an 81-70 victory over John Carroll. Jacob Owens knocked down all seven of his shot attempts, including six 3-pointers, en route to a team-high 20 points. Brennan McKean added 18 points (five 3-pointers) for Marietta, which shot 50 percent from the floor.
The Crusaders' top-ranked scoring defense will be challenged Wednesday, as the Pioneers lead the league in scoring margin (+9.9 per game) and field goal percentage (.475) and rank second in scoring offense (79.2 points per game). J.J. Martin ranks third in the conference in scoring (16.4 ppg) and among OAC leaders in rebounding, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and blocked shots.
The Crusaders and Pioneers split a pair of games last year, with the home team taking each contest. In the most recent meeting on Feb. 15, 2012, Marietta shot 51.9 percent on its way to a 73-48 triumph.
Baldwin Wallace (11-4, 6-2), which is currently alone in third place in the standings, suffered its last loss on Dec. 8, when Michael Sommer's 3-point buzzer-beater gave Capital a 64-63 triumph at the Capital Center. The Yellow Jackets have since won eight straight, including victories over John Carroll (106-75) and at Muskingum (74-64) last week.
Kyle Payne (17.0 points per game) and Kevin Krakowiak (15.1 ppg) each rank in the top 10 in the league in scoring. Baldwin Wallace boasts a trio of players who lead the league in four statistical categories in Krakowiak (free throw percentage), Jason Crowe (assists, assist-to-turnover ratio) and Ben Umbel (steals).
The Yellow Jackets rank in the top four in the OAC in both scoring offense and scoring defense, and lead the conference in free throw percentage (.751) and rebounding margin (+5.9).
