There is not an empty seat in the house a half hour before game time, and the long-awaited battle of Eagle Road lived up to expectations as Cabrini and Eastern went down to the wire. Last year's triple overtime affair at Cabrini set the stage for tonight's big game at Eastern. The Cavaliers, behind a game-high 33 points from Kevin Misevicius, escaped with an 80-71 win to retain the road sign for another year.
The Cavaliers built an early 11-4 lead behind seven points from Misevicius. Derek Wright scored a pair of baskets including a three pointer to help trim the deficit to four at 13-9. The Cavaliers, playing their pace stretched the advantage to seven on a three from Dom Farrello before the Eagles scored seven straight to electrify the crowd and tie the game at 16.
The Cavaliers used a second chance three from Misevicius and a steal and lay-in from the senior standout to push the Cabrini edge to 23-18. The Eagles answered with a 5-0 run capped by a Martin Soaries three-point play to tie the game with five minutes to play. Cory Lemons, who would finish with 15 points, converted a pair of free throws to put the guests up before Wright answered with his second three-pointer of the half to give the Eagles their first lead of the game.
The home team was able to stretch that lead to 27-25 as Wright split a pair of free throws, but a jumper from Farrello and a pair of Brandon Carter free throws gave the visitors a four-point edge with a minute to play. Collin Whipple made the first of two free throws, and it looked like the Eagles caught a big break when Alex Nelson pulled down the offensive rebound to set up the final shot of the half. Justin McClelland's three pointer rimmed out and the Cavaliers held a 31-28 lead at the break.
Wright led all scorers with 14 in the opening 20 minutes, and Soaries pitched in with seven points and eight boards before the break. Cabrini, meanwhile, had 12 from Misevicius and seven from Farrello. Both teams shot right around 40% for the opening half.
The second half started with a good opening possession, and Nelson was able to earn a pair of free throws to cut the Cabrini lead to 31-30. The game remained a two-point affair until the visitors used a 9-0 run over just 90 seconds to forge a 44-33 lead. Cabrini used an effective press and made three field goals and three free throws without missing a shot in the run.
Down 11, the Eastern defense toughened, but it seemed every time they would close the gap, Farrello or Misevicius was there to hit a big shot, and Cabrini led 64-55 with six and a half minutes to play. A Whipple three-pointer and a pair of Soaries free throws brought the crowd to life, but Misevicius stepped outside and hit another three. The senior standout made five long-range shots on the night. Chris Myers made both ends of a one and one and Wright scored in transition to close the gap to three with just under five to play. After a pair of free throws from Cabrini, the Eagles got two straight transition baskets to pull to within one.
Lemons broke into the lane for a tough basket to push the advantage back to three and Misevicius hit another bomb for a 74-68 lead with just under two minutes to play. Wright answered immediately with his third triple the night, but the eastern offense would not be able to overcome, and the Cavaliers made their free throws to improve to 16-1 on the year.
Wright finished with 23 points, Nelson had 13, and Soaries added 16 to go with 10 rebounds, but Farrello's 19 and Lemons' 15 along with Misevicius' big night proved to be too much for the Eagles.
Eastern Head Coach Matt Nadelhoffer was frustrated by the critical second half turnovers, but saw bright spot as Wright stepped into a scoring role. "We need to defend better, and do a better job taking care of the ball as we go back into Conference play. It was good to see Derek hit shots. We shot the ball very well [55%] in the second half, but we gave it away much more than we should have, and they had too many easy shots in transition. Their veteran kids hit some really big shots tonight."
The Eagles will face another veteran-laden squad this Saturday as they start the second half of the Freedom Conference schedule with a home game against defending champion and National Quarter-finalist DeSales. The league-leading Bulldogs have not lost in the Freedom Conference this season. The Eagles currently sit alone in fourth in the league standings, with five of their seven remaining league games at home.
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