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COLUMBUS – The Capital University men's basketball team (9-4, 6-0 OAC) defeated Ohio Athletic Conference rival Otterbein (5-8, 2-4 OAC) by a final of 100-62 in its most impressive offensive output of the season as it extended its winning streak to seven games in a row.

Senior guard Tim Congrove (Circleville, Ohio) led the Crusader offensive attack with a career-high 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting (7-of-10 3-pointers). Capital knocked down 15-of-25 from 3-point range as a team for the game, good for a 60 percent clip.

Freshman point guard AJ Dixon (Hilliard, Ohio) totaled 11 points, and senior forward Spencer Niekamp (St. Henry, Ohio) posted 10 points. The two were among four Crusader scorers in double figures.

Following a slow start to the ballgame, the Crusaders finally found their groove as they shot the lights out from distance in the opening period.


Early on the offense ran through Congrove as he connected on four 3-pointers in the first half and scored 14 of the team's first 30 points.

Capital connected on nine 3-pointers as a team in the half and shot 53.1 percent from the field as they built a 21-point lead over the Cardinals heading into the intermission.

As impressive a start as Capital had in the first half, their defense also stood tall as they forced Otterbein into committing eight turnovers and held the Cardinals to 36.7 percent shooting heading into the break.

Opening up the second half of action, the Cardinals battled back, cutting the lead down to 13 at the 12:18 mark. However, the Crusaders once again found their groove from distance as senior forward Michael Sommer (Celina, Ohio) would answer right back with a 3-pointer and Capital would never look back.

Capital outscored its cross-town rival 53-36 in the second half and won by an impressive 38-point margin in large part to great defensive execution. Capital's 100 points against Otterbein marked the first time the team eclipsed the 100-point mark since February 2, 2008, when the Crusaders dropped 113 against John Carroll.

Over the course of the ballgame the Crusader defense scored 36 points off Cardinal turnovers and outscored Otterbein's bench 36-17.

The Crusader men will return to action on Wednesday, January 9, when they travel to New Concord, Ohio, to take on Muskingum for a 7:30 tip.