BOURBONNAIS, Ill. --- Trailing the University of St. Francis men's basketball team by as many as 15 points in the opening half and for 23-plus minutes of the contest, NAIA No.4 ranked Olivet Nazarene University rallied late to claim an 89-83 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference victory Saturday (Feb. 8) afternoon at McHie Arena.
 

The league co-leading Tigers (24-2, 16-2 CCAC) used only seven players, but five of them scored at least 12 points each, including Nic Reed and Alex Gross, who both secured double-doubles on the day. Birkey, the defending CCAC Player of the Year, finished with 25 points and ten rebounds, while Gross hit nine of his 12 field goal attempts to amass 18 points to go along with his ten boards.
 

Dane Schlafley just missed out on a different type of double-double with his 19 points and nine assists.
 

The Saints (9-16, 7-12) never trailed in the first half, jumping out to an initial 8-2 advantage and pushing that lead to as high as 36-21 with 5:23 remaining in the half. However, they would only score one more basket the remainder of the half – a Mitch Kwasigroch (SR/Manhattan, Ill.) three-pointer at the 4:28 mark – while Olivet Nazarene countered with six field goals in eight attempts, including two threes, and a pair of free throws to virtually wipe out the deficit. 
 

USF went 1-for-5 from the field with a missed free throw and two turnovers during that stretch, but still clung to a 39-37 lead at the break. 
 

From there, the two teams battled back and forth throughout the second half, which was made up of eight ties and 11 lead changes. USF's biggest advantage after the break was three points, while Olivet Nazarene was able to go up by as many as eight points, 76-68, with just over five minutes remaining in the contest. That closed out an 11-3 run by the Tigers, which wiped out the game's final tie at 65.
 

USF would pull to within two points, 81-79, with 1:50 to play, but a Gross layup and six free throws down the stretch by the Tigers would seal the Saints' run of tough luck in conference play. All 12 league setbacks have now come by seven points or less.
 

The loss, combined with Governors State University's 97-67 win over Cardinal Stritch University, leaves the Saints needing to run the table in their final three games to even have a chance at a postseason berth.
 

Malik Bailey (SR/Tutwiler, Miss.) and Lewis Holey (JR/Sydney, Australia) led the Saints with 16 points, four assists and three rebounds each.
 

Both teams shot well on the afternoon with the Saints particularly strong from three-point range, where they converted 14-of-27 attempts (.519). Overall from the field, they were 29-of-56 (.518).
 

Olivet Nazarene, meanwhile, was 31-of-57 from the field (.544), including 18-of-31 after the break (.581) when it outscored USF, 52-44. The Tigers also gained a win in the rebounding department, 34-22, with 12 coming on the offensive end leading to a 14-9 advantage on second-chance points.
 

Up Next

Another tough battle looms against the other co-leader in the league – No.19 ranked Holy Cross College (Ind.) – Wednesday night when the Saints open up a two-game homestand. Tipoff is slated for 7 pm at the Sullivan Center.