JCU wins OAC title, bid to tourney

The magic was back for the John Carroll men’s basketball team Feb. 24 in the title game of the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament.

Playing with fire and purpose at both ends of the floor, the top-seeded Blue Streaks downed No. 3 seed Ohio Northern, 94-77, in front of a packed house at the DeCarlo Varsity Center.

With the impressive performance, JCU upped its record to 23-5 and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.

It’s the second OAC tournament title for JCU in the past three years and the latest high point in a season full of them for first-year JCU coach Pete Moran and his team. On Feb. 23, Moran was named OAC Coach of the Year.

Moran is following in the footsteps of his father, Mike Moran, who guided the Blue JOHN CARROLL 94, OHIO NORTHERN 77

Streaks to four OAC tournament titles and 11 trips to the NCAA tournament in his 25 years at the helm.

The elder Moran was in the stands behind the JCU bench for most of the game before taking a place in the student section called the Carroll Crazies.

“It’s a special feeling to do this in front of my heroes, and especially my father,” Pete Moran said, holding the tournament trophy while his players and fans celebrated around him.

Senior guard Matthew Csuhran finished with a game-high 19 points for the Blue Streaks and was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

“This was an amazing night,” Csuhran said as teammates congratulated him on the MVP honor. “We played for each other. The atmosphere in here was unbelievable.”

Senor guard Tony Vuyancih turned in a bravura performance with 14 points and 11 rebounds.

“This was a total team victory. These guys mean so much to me,” Vuyancih said, pointing to the JCU players mixing with the hundreds of postgame celebrants.

Sophomore guard Jimmy Berger and his brother, Ryan Berger, added 13 and 10 points, respectively, as the Blue Streaks shot 49.3 percent from the field overall and 54.3 percent in the second half.

“We persevered tonight and got the job done against an outstanding Ohio Northern team,” Jimmy Berger said.

Freshman guard Jackson Sartain chipped in with 10 points.

The Blue Streaks were just as impressive on defense as offense. Ohio Northern standouts Nate Burger and Ryan Bruns were the top two scorers in the OAC during the regular season. Burger managed 16 points, nine below his average. Bruns had 12 points, 12 below his average. They combined to shoot 10-of-33 from the field.

“Our half-court defense really wore on them,” Pete Moran said.

Csuhran scored 13 points in the first half to help JCU overcome an early 9-4 deficit. The Blue Streaks took their first lead at 21-20 on a lay-up by Jimmy Berger at the 11:04 mark. He followed with a 3-pointer to make it 24-20. The balance of the half was back and forth. At halftime, JCU had a 43-39 lead.

The second half belonged to the Blue Streaks as they built leads as large as 19 points.

Ohio Northern bowed out at 19-9.

When the final buzzer sounded, the energy building in the stands all night flowed onto the court in a teeming mass of players, coaches and fans.

The 64-team field of the NCAA Division III tournament will be announced on Feb. 26 at 12:30 p.m.