Tartans Win UAA Opener 75-63 Over Case Western

(CLEVELAND, Ohio) – The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team took out Case Western Reserve University 75-63 in the University Athletic Association opener for both teams Saturday, January 7. The Tartans (6-6, 1-0) took the lead for good midway through the first period and fought off a Spartan (8-4, 0-1) rally in the second half for the victory.

Senior John Duhring (Round Hill, Va./Saint Maria Goretti) scored the first two buckets of the game and at the 12-minute mark of the first period put the Tartans ahead for the half 12-11 with a jumper. Sophomore Joe Belechak (Cranberry Twp., Pa./Seneca Valley) hit a three-pointer for the Tartans on their next possession and the visitors pushed their lead to 13 points (29-16) on a fastbreak layup by freshman Matt Loebbaka (Mt. Prospect, Ill./Prospect) off a steal and assist by sophomore Christian Manoli (San Rafael, Calif./Terra Linda) with 5:23 to go.

The Tartans worked a fast-paced style to score 13 points off 10 Spartan turnovers and grab 21 rebounds to the Spartans 13 for the half. Carnegie Mellon scored seven points off six offensive rebounds and only allowed the Spartans to grab two boards on the offensive glass to lead 38-28 at the break.

The Spartans held the hot shooting hand in the second half to pull within two points (51-49) while the Tartans settled for jumpers shooting only 31.6% to the Spartans 60% for the first 10 minutes.

After a Tartan timeout, senior Joe Kromka (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway) hit a layup and sophomore Rashaun Riley (Houston, Texas/Cypress Creek) drained a three-pointer to quiet the Spartans who didn't hit another jumper until a minute left in the game. While the Spartans went cold from the field (0-5) following the timeout, the Tartans were seven of ten as Loebbaka was three-for-three on layups and pushed the Tartans lead to 13 points, 69-56 with 2:22 to go.

Carnegie Mellon finished the game going 6-8 from the free throw line and finished 18-26 for the game to conclude with the double-digit victory.

Duhring finished with a team-high 20 points and tied a career-high with 13 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Loebbaka tied a career-high with 10 points as sophomore Rob Mohen (Stamford, Conn./Regis School (NYC)) scored a critical eight points off the bench for a career-high.

The Spartans were led by freshman Jordan Dean's 21 points and David Thompson's 16 points and eight rebounds.

The Tartans will continue action on Friday, January 13 when University of Chicago visits Skibo Gym at 8:00 p.m.