By Ron Miller The Daily Jeffersonian NEW CONCORD -- After playing a superb first half and taking a four-point lead to halftime, the host Muskingum University Fighting Muskies saw the lead dwindle away the second half as the visiting Ohio Northern Polar Bears rebounded to post a 69-57 Ohio Athletic Conference win in the Recreation Center Wednesday. The Muskies shot a blistering 60.9 percent from the field the opening half, including a 4-of-7 mark from beyond the arc, to take a 36-32 advantage to the locker room. Muskingum (6-14, 1-12 OAC) opened the second half with consecutive turnovers and the Bears capitalized to quickly grab the lead just 1:11 into the round and never trailed again. Northern built as much as a eight point lead by the midpoint of the frame and had the biggest edge of the night (69-51) with just 2:06 to go. "We came out the second half and turned it over twice and that set the tone," Muskingum coach Gene Ford lamented. "You can't do that in this league. You have to play 40 minutes and in this league if you have a dry spell and dig a hole, you can't come back. "They (ON) were more aggressive the second half," he added, "and they just wore us down. They are a methodical team and got more penetration to the basket the second half." After Trevor Scott (a standout player last year) was recognized before the game for joining the Muskingum 1,000 point club and his contributions to the basketball program, Cory Bourquin led the Muskies' first-half attack with 13 points hitting 5-of-6 field shots, including 3-of-4 from outside the arc. Kyle Clinedinst and Nick Hershberger contributed to the first-half effort with eight points each as the hosts built a 10-2 advantage at the outset. Ohio Northern (11-9, 9-4 OAC) knotted the score at 12, but back-to-back treys by Bourquin spotted Muskingum to a eight-point spread with 7:27 remaining in the half. Another trifecta by Bourquin provided the biggest Muskie lead of the half (11) with 4:53 showing. The Polar Bears then reeled off seven straight to cut the difference to four. Carson Thomas buried a three for Muskingum, but Ezra Bradshaw answered with a long ball for the Bears. Bourquin dropped in a layup, and Kyle Meyer converted a pair of free throws with just 20 seconds left to provide the 36-32 halftime difference. The Muskies, coming off a heartbreaking three-point overtime loss to OAC co-leading John Carroll, have lost five games by three points or less. "It grinds on the kids," Ford admitted. "They were coming off a heartbreaking loss and it has been a tough year. They are ground down, but have kept playing hard. When we play well and execute we do all right, but we don't make enough big plays." After shooting 50 percent the opening half, Ohio Northern followed with a 60.9 percent effort the second half as they erased the deficit and steadily pulled away. Bradshaw and Kyle Meyer were the two big guns for the Bears with Meyer pouring in 20 points and Bradshaw close behind with 19. Scott Schnelle chipped in eight points. The Muskies shooting cooled the second half as they hit just 7-of-20 shots for 35 percent for a 48.8 percent game effort. Bourquin and Hershberger paced Muskingum with 15 points each. Clinedinst added 12 to go with four assists and Colin Bass (New Concord-John Glenn) followed with seven markers. For one of the few times this season Muskingum had a rebounding advantage (27-20) with Bass pulling down seven, while Clinedinst and Hershberger added five boards each. Kyle Meyer paced ONU with six caroms. NEXT -- Muskingum returns to the court on Saturday, with a road game at Otterbein at 7:30 p.m.
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