PITTSBURGH, Pa. – La Roche men's basketball welcomed fans for the first time in the 2024-25 season, but it was the Otterbein Cardinals spoiling the homecoming, coming away with an 84-76 victory.
The Redhawks started the night hot with a 6-0 run in the first couple of minutes to open the action, but Otterbein rattled off a 16-2 run in response to take a 16-8 lead with 12:16 remaining.
The deficit would grow to 11 at 22-11 with 8:52 to go, but La Roche pushed forward with an 11-3 charge to make it 25-22 with just over five minutes left in the half.
The red and black battled to cut the deficit to 34-32 with 56 second remaining after falling behind by eight just three minutes earlier, but the Cardinals closed the half strong to lead 40-34 at the break.
Out of the half, Otterbein reopened a double-digit margin, pushing it up to 12 at 55-43 at the 15:48 mark, briefly breaking it before it returned to 12 with 12:39 left.
Still down 67-55 with 8:22 on the clock, the Redhawks got a huge burst, utilizing an 11-0 run to make it just a 67-66 game with 5:06 to go.
The deficit for La Roche grew back to five, but with 1:15 remaining the score sat at 75-74.
Unfortunately for the red and black, a pair off missed free-throws and some shot attempts allowed Otterbein to seal the victory at the free-throw line.
For the game, the Redhawks finished going 29-for-63 (46%) from the floor and 6-for-26 (23.1%) from three. From the foul line, they capitalized on 12 of 18 attempts (66.7%).
On the other side, the Cardinals finished 29-for-52 (55.8%) from the field, 6-for-15 (40%) from deep, but got to the free-throw line 27 times, making 20 (74.1%).
All five Redhawk starters scored in double figures, led by Joe Starzynski's 18 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Michael Brooks netted 16 points with four assists, Dominic Elliott contributed 13 points and four rebounds, Bryce Epps scored 12 with three assists and Dawson Summers chipped in 11 points.
La Roche returns to the court on Wednesday, Nov. 20, when they welcome Muskingum. Opening tip is slated for 7 p.m.