Yellow Jackets pick up league win at home over Siena Heights

DEFIANCE, Ohio - After spending the more than two weeks away from the Karl H. Weaner Center, the Defiance Yellow Jackets treated the home crowd to a 71-63 win over Siena Heights in the team's long-awaited return.

The Yellow Jackets (8-14, 5-11 WHAC) used another strong second half shooting the ball with a 57 percent mark after halftime. DC is now 6-1 when shooting over 50 percent following the break. The Saints (6-18, 3-13 WHAC) dropped their 11th out of 12 as the Jackets avenged a close loss in Adrian back in November.

Defiance enjoyed an 8-for-13 start to the game and built a 21-14 lead but six turnovers spoiled what could've been more. The Saints responded in a big way by locking down defensively and held Defiance off the board for the next six minutes. Siena Heights took 14-0 run to flip the seven-point advantage back on the Yellow Jackets. The run was halted on a strong take to the rim by DC junior forward Jordyn Jury. The two teams played even for the last four minutes of the half before Siena Heights took a 30-25 lead into the locker room.

In the second half, shots started falling for Defiance once again and never let up. DC got 3-pointers early in the half by Evan Angstmann and Devonte Curry. Christian Burton posted a big bucket when he followed an offensive rebound to make the score 44-41 with 10:27 left. Curry hit another triple followed by a Jury lay-in to give Defiance a four-point cushion with nine minutes to play.

THE TURNING POINT

Carter Sudhoff was fed a heavy dose in the post and turned out to play the closer's role coming down the stretch. After scoring six quick points in the first two minutes of the second half, he worked for three straight Defiance layups in four possessions. This allowed Jalen Brown to get to the hole to put DC up eight with six minutes left before tempers flared for Siena Heights for the second time in the game. Jury hit two free throws to propel Defiance up by 10. From there, the game moved to the free throw line as neither team recorded a field goal until the 1:29 mark. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Carter Sudhoff led the Jackets with 18 points and tallied 12 points in the second half. 
• Christian Burton and Devonte Curry joined the big man in double figures with 16 and 12 respectively. Curry went 3-for-3 beyond the arc.
• Jordyn Jury also matched his season-high in points with eight off the bench. He went 3-for-5 from the floor, missing just a pair of 3-pointers, and sank two free throw attempts.
• Evan Angstmann and Jalen Brown were each very close to double-doubles. Angstmann had a team-high eight rebounds with nine points while Brown chipped in seven points and seven boards.
• Defiance shot 48 percent for their fourth straight game shooting better than 40 percent, which is the longest such streak of the season.
• The Yellow Jackets have overcome a halftime deficit four times this season thanks to their third-best-shooting second half of the year (57.1).
• Despite 10 first-half turnovers, the Yellow Jackets gave up the ball just six times during the final 20 minutes.
• DC also won the battle of the boards, 38-32. The Jackets are 5-2 when they win the glass.
• With their eighth win, Defiance matched their win total from the previous two seasons in 22 games this year. The last time DC won double digits was during the 2021-22 season with 11 victories.
• Defiance pulls into a 10th-place tie with Michigan-Dearborn and are a half-game behind Cleary for ninth. The top 10 teams will make the WHAC Tournament this year. 

UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets host Cornerstone at the Weaner Center on Saturday afternoon for a 3 p.m. tipoff.

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