Big Red Edge the Yeomen, 78-74

Loll, a 6-foot-5 junior, tried to carry the Yeomen on his back as he checked in with 21 points and a game-high 10 rebounds – finishing 8-of-13 from the floor and 3-of-4 from 3-point land. First-year Gian Chiu and senior Matt Godwin added 10 points a piece.

“Mike played tremendous again,” head coach Isaiah Cavaco said. “However, we did not do a good job on either side of the ball and could not take advantage during any pivotal points in the game.”

OC (4-17, 3-9 NCAC) allowed five Denison (2-19, 2-10 NCAC) players to reach double-figures in scoring. The Yeomen were also plagued by a slow start as the Big Red quickly jumped out to a 13-4 lead but Oberlin battled back to get within one, 39-38, at the half.

A Loll jumper gave the Yeomen at 59-57 lead with 5:11 left to play, but Chris Eberst answered with a 3-ball on the next possession to jump start an 11-2 run over the next three minutes. Oberlin had one last shot when Godwin nailed a triple-hit of his own with 17 seconds – making it a 73-71 game. However, Brian Elder answered with an old-fashion 3-point play and Chris Luther nailed two free throws in the final seconds to ice the win away for Denison.

The Big Red were red hot from long range as they dialed in on 10-of-19 triples-tries (52.6 percent) on the afternoon and shot 53.5 percent (23-of-43) overall. Oberlin shot the ball nearly as well as it checked in at 50.9 percent (29-of-57) from the field and 38.9 percent (7-of-18) from long range.

OC held a 33-23 advantage in the battle of the boards, but its bench was outscored 31-16.

Oberlin will return to the hardwood on Wednesday, Feb. 13, when NCAC foe Kenyon comes to town for a 7 p.m. tip-off.

Yeo Notes: Mike Loll is 38 points shy of 1,000 for his career … former Yeomen football star, Chase Palmer made his debut on the hardwood today finishing with five points, three rebounds and two charges in his 17 minutes of work … with the loss Oberlin falls to 1-5 in conference road games this season.