Box Score The 24th-ranked Case Western Reserve University men's basketball team saw its program record 12-game winning streak come to a close on Friday evening, as the Spartans dropped an 80-70 contest to Emory University at Horsburgh Gymnasium in Cleveland, Ohio.
The loss dropped the Spartans to 12-2 on the season and to 2-1 in University Athletic Association play, while Emory improved to 10-4 overall and to 3-1 in conference play with the victory.
Junior forward Cole Frilling led all scorers with 24 points in the game, shooting 10-of-17 overall and four-of-eight from long range, while collecting six rebounds, three blocks and a steal. Graduate student guard Mitch Prendergast added 17 points on a five-of-11 shooting effort, including two-of-five from behind the three-point line, and senior forward Ryan Newton came off the bench to score 10.
The Spartans struggled to keep up with the Eagles' torrid shooting pace in the first half, as Emory shot 68.0% overall (17-of-25), including 10-of-14 from three-point range (71.4%). Emory's hot shooting gave the team a 16-point lead, 45-29, heading into halftime.
However, CWRU battled back in the second half. After falling behind by 19 with 16:57 to play in the game, the Spartans rallied off a quick 10-0 run, capped off by a three from sophomore guard Daniel Florey that cut the deficit to nine, 51-42, with 14:57 to play. With under five minutes left in the game and trailing by 13, a 9-0 run by the Spartans, keyed by threes from Frilling and Newton, got CWRU back to within four points, 74-70, with 2:10 left to play. However, that would be as close as CWRU would get during the stretch, as Emory pulled away late for the 10-point win.
CWRU finished the game shooting 39.3% (24-of-61) overall and 34.6% (nine-of-26) from three-point range and connected on 76.5% of their free throw attempts (13-of-17). The Spartans also forced 21 Emory turnovers, and out-scoring the Eagles 25-13 off turnovers.
The Spartans will look to bounce back quickly, as the team will continue its four-game UAA home stand on Sunday, January 23 against Rochester. Tip-off is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
