Holy Cross men’s basketball went 9-18 overall and 6-14 in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) in head coach Tyler Braidic’s first season at the helm. Sophomore guard Joey Garwood led the Saints in scoring with 17 points and three rebounds per game followed by senior guard Justin O’Neal, who had 15 points and four rebounds per game. With a promising first season, Braidic looks to improve the Saints’ roster and retool for the future.
The Saints opened the season beating East-West 84-58 in October. They began conference play against Viterbo on Nov. 20, winning 72-59. Senior guard Phil Robles II had one of his best games of the season scoring 23 points on six three-pointers. O’Neal also added 15 in the victory. Then the Saints traveled just a few minutes away to challenge IU South Bend and lost 65-49 to the team and tied for third place in the conference to move to 3-5 overall and 1-1 in conference play.
They went 2-2 in December with wins against St. Ambrose and Taylor. Garwood scored 20 points to lead scorers, help the Saints pick up their second conference win of the season and move to 4-5 against St. Ambrose. Against Taylor, the Saints trailed 64-63 with 13 seconds remaining, but O’Neal was fouled as time expired with a chance to win the game at the free-throw line. He calmly sank both free throws and helped the Saints win a critical game to stay around .500.
Holy Cross lost to second-place Indiana Northwest 77-73 and Calmut 58-57 in the last two games of December, this time on the wrong side of a last second free throw.
The Saints had a bumpy stretch in January with everything from triple digit games to overtime victories and heartbreaking losses. They opened January taking on conference champion St. Francis and lost 70-60. Then, they won two games in a row against Olivet Nazarene and Judson in the longest conference win stretch of the season. The Olivet Nazarene game saw O’Neal and Garwood both score over 20 points and the Saints earn their best win of the season. Stringing together another win over Judson in which the team scored 103, the team started to find offensive momentum.
They followed up the promising stretch with three consecutive losses ahead of hosting St. Ambrose. The Saints needed to get back on track in conference play and this game was a perfect opportunity. In the most thrilling game of the season, O’Neal hit a clutch three pointer to tie the game at 67, assisted by Garwood with 19 seconds left. On the other side, junior guard Nash Hostetler stole the ball from St. Ambrose and the Saints forced overtime. Leading the whole way through overtime, the Saints won 80-75 and once again O’Neal and Garwood each scored 20+ points.
The Saints dropped three games in a row to Indiana Northwest, Calumet and St. Francis ahead of a home game against Judson. The Saints once again were able to beat Judson with help from a season high 32 points for Garwood. Garwood averaged 23 points throughout February and 21 points in the wins for the Saints throughout the season. This 75-73 victory would prove to be the final one of the season as the Saints dropped the next four conference games to finish the season at 6-14.
