UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Matt Csuhran's 19 points in 23 minutes led a balanced attack as host John Carroll defeated Ohio Northern, 94-77, in the Ohio Athletic Conference men's basketball championship game on Saturday night.
The victory, before a standing-room crowd at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center, clinched an NCAA Division III tournament berth for the Blue Streaks. John Carroll (23-5) will be considered to host a first-round game next weekend.
"I really like our chances to host a couple games," said John Carroll coach Pete Moran moments after the game as Blue Streaks fans mobbed the court. "When you look at our strength of schedule and who we've beat, I think we have that chance."
John Carroll is 5-4 in OAC championship games. The Blue Streaks won championships in 2003, 2004, 2009 and 2016, all under the coaching of Mike Moran, the father of Pete Moran. Mike Moran retired after last season after 25 years at John Carroll.
Csuhran, a 6-5 senior guard forward, was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, but he preferred to mention his teammates.
"The one thing we always preach is family," said Csuhran, who is averaging nearly 18 points a game. "We say that after every huddle. We spend so much time together off the court, and we play together on it. Definitely, if we weren't this close, we couldn't have done this."
Antonio Vuyancih (14), Jimmy Berger (13), Jackson Sartain (11) and Jimmy Berger's brother, Ryan (10) also scored in double figures for the Blue Streaks.
John Carroll's man-to-man defense and full court pressure disrupted the offensive rhythm of Ohio Northern (19-9), which shot 38 percent in the decisive second half.
"We're a good team when we defend," Moran said. "We put a lot of emphasis on the defensive end the last couple weeks, and it paid off."
The Blue Streaks held Polar Bears standouts Ryan Bruns and Nate Burger to 12 and 16 points, respectively. Bruns, a 6-8 center, took a 24.8 point scoring average into the game. John Carroll's 6-6 Allen Stokes, 6-5 Emil Hess, 6-2 Brian Papich and Csuhran took turns guarding Bruns.
Burger was scoring 25.5 points per game. He was guarded at different times by Vuyancih, Sean Flannery and Jimmy Berger.
John Carroll took control of the game with two second-half scoring runs.
"We wore on them a little bit," Moran said. "They started missing shots and we began getting open looks. I think our half-court intensity really wore on them."
The Blue Streaks boosted their 43-39 halftime lead to 57-43 in the first four minutes of the second half. The 14-4 run began with Stokes' layup off a nifty Ryan Berger pass, followed by John Cirillo's running bank shot. Ryan Berger drove the lane for a fast break layup and Cirillo made a follow shot. Sartain then hit a 3-pointer and finished a fast break layup.
The Polar Bears pulled to within 60-53, but John Carroll went on a 15-3 run to lead, 75-56, with 10 minutes left. Flannery canned two foul shots and Stokes converted a 3-point play with a fastbreak layup. Ryan Berger drove the lane for a hoop and Hess had a layup in transition. Sartain then ended any Polar Bears' hopes with consecutive 3-point shots.