CLINTON, Iowa - Ice-cold shooting in the first half had the Ashford University (4-3, 0-0 MCC) men's basketball team in recovery mode, ultimately leading to a 79-59 defeat at the hands of No. 19 Cardinal Stritch University (2-1, 0-0 CCAC) on Tuesday evening.
The Saints were taking their shot at a nationally ranked top-20 team for the second straight game, succumbing by just a seven-point margin at No. 13 Briar Cliff University last Saturday. Both rankings reflect the preseason NAIA Div. II Top-25 Poll.
The Saints shot just 26 percent from the field in the first half and the Wolves took a 17-point lead heading into the break.
Cardinal Stritch guard Kody Braddix had a game-high 27 points, two-time NAIA All-American forward Trey Triplett added 16 and swingman Brandon D' Amico chipped in 15.
Sophomore forward Peter Tanzillo of Kewanee, Ill., was the only Saint to touch double-figures, scoring 10 points.
Sophomore forward Matthias Burns of Chicago, coming off of Catholic Classic All-Tournament Team honors, hauled in nine rebounds.
"We didn't get off to a good start and our offense wasn't running very efficiently tonight," AU Head Coach Andy Eberhart said. "We couldn't slow down their second-half momentum and just wasn't one of our better performances this year."
It was a sluggish start out of the gates for both teams, the game's first field goal not coming until two and a half minutes after the tip.
The Saints led on the opening bucket by sophomore forward Marvis Kidd of Hazel Crest, Ill., but other than two lead changes in the next four minutes, Ashford had to play catch up in this one.
AU endured a scoreless four-minute stretch in the first half while Cardinal Stritch opened up a nine-point lead. Another three-minute scoring drought followed as the Wolves extended their lead to 16.
The Saints shot a respectable 47 percent in the second half, but the damage had been done. Cardinal Stritch led by as many as 25 in the final 20 minutes and Ashford rested its starters with time to spare.
Ashford takes on Columbia College to tip off the Culver-Stockton College Classic on Friday at 5:30 p.m. in Canton, Mo. Columbia was the NAIA Div. II runner-up in last year's national tournament.
