Schomaeker Scores 31 in Win Against Anderson (Ind.)

ANDERSON, IND.  --  Senior guard Travis Schomaeker (Ottawa/Ottawa-Glandorf) scored a career-high 31 points to help lead the Defiance College men's basketball team to an 89-79 come-from-behind win against Anderson (Ind.) University in a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference game in Anderson, Ind.

The Yellow Jackets attempted 32 free-throws in the game and made 30 (93.8 percent).  Schomaeker got to the line 20 times alone and converted 19 of his attempts.  He also shot six-of-15 from the field to account for his 31 points.  He also grabbed four rebounds and had three assists.  Schomaeker wasn't the only DC player to have a big scoring night as senior forward Bernard Edwards (Detroit, Mich./Warren Cousino) scored 26 points on eight-of-16 shooting (50.0 percent), including nine-of-10 (90.0 percent) at the charity stripe.  Also scoring in double figures, was senior guard Mason Roth (McComb) and sophomore guard Michael Parker (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) with 14 and 12 points, respectively.  Roth also added seven rebounds and all 12 of Parker's points came from behind the arc on four successful triples.  In addition, junior forward Wade Wooley (Wauseon) grabbed a game-high nine boards.

Defiance (9-3, 4-1 HCAC) trailed Anderson (4-8, 3-2 NCAC) for the majority of the first half, including trailing by as many as eight points late in the period.  The Ravens jumped out early beginning the game on an 8-1 scoring run.  The Jackets answered with an ensuing 9-2 run of their own capped by a three-pointer by Parker to even the score at 10-10 at the 14:34 minute mark.  DC maintained the offensive pressure and moved ahead on the scoreboard shortly after building a three-point margin, 15-12, with 12:14 to go in the period following a layup by Roth.  Anderson eventually regained the lead and boasted a more comfortable eight-point advantage, 30-22, with 4:08 remaining before halftime.  But DC rallied again as an Edwards layup sparked a 10-2 run to tie the game again, this time at 32-32 with 1:20 to go.  The Ravens tallied the final points of the half on a layup to go up by a basket, 34-32, at the break.

Anderson looked to take control of the game outscoring Defiance, 16-6, in the first 5:45 of the second half.  The Yellow Jackets shot 25 of its 32 free-throw attempts in the final 20 minutes and slowly worked their way back into the game to eventually build a four-point advantage, 61-57, with 7:54 left by outscoring their opponents, 23-7.  DC continued to pull away and recorded its first double-digit lead at the 3:19 mark, 64-74, on its way to leading by as many as 13 points, including an 80-67 edge with 1:43 to go thanks to a jumper by Edwards.  Anderson made one final rally with a 10-3 run to get to within six points, 83-77, with 39 seconds to go.  But that was as close as the Ravens would get as the Jackets made all six of their free-throws down the stretch to seal their fifth straight victory by a final of 89-79.

The Ravens shot 49.1 percent (28-of-57) for the game and were held to just 26.7 percent (four-of-15) from long range.  Anderson also made its share of trips to the free-throw line with 23 attempts and made 19 (82.6 percent).  Justin Jordan led four players in double figures with 23 points.  Max Mollaun was second with 18 points, follwed by Micah Smith with 11 points and Nathan Gross added 10 points.

Defiance will remain on the road and travel to Terre Haute, Ind. for a HCAC matchup against Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology on Saturday, Jan. 10.  The game will be part of a basketball doubleheader with the Yellow Jacket women's team.  The women will also take on the Fightin' Engineers with their game scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., followed by the men at 3 p.m.