MADISON, WISC. - A matchup of two nationally ranked Region 4 teams required more than the regulation 40 minutes to decide a winner Tuesday night inside H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium, and for the second consecutive game, Madison College came away with an overtime victory after defeating Joliet Junior College by an 89-82 final. The WolfPack, ranked #20 in the latest NJCAA Division II Poll, turned up the defensive pressures down the stretch as they held the Wolves, ranked #4 in the latest NJCAA Division III Poll, without a field goal for the final three minutes of regulation and the entire five minute OT as they rallied from an 11-point deficit to secure their sixth straight win.

Joliet Junior College (17-6) possessed an 11-point lead at 68-57 following a pair of free throws with 7:50 left to play in the second half. Freshman Carson McCormick answered with one of his five 3-pointers and it triggered a 17-6 run that featured another McCormick trey and six points from Jackson Bertagnoli to help the WolfPack pull even at 74-74 with 1:35 remaining. The Wolves sank two more free throws to go ahead entering the final minute, which saw two offensive rebounds in a single Madison College possession resulting in a Bertagnoli basket to tie the game. Both teams had one more possession to attempt a game-winning shot; however, JJC threw the ball out of bounds and the Pack was unable to get a shot off before the buzzer.



Heading into OT, Madison College had not allowed a basket since the 3:21 mark in the second half, and that did not change over the final five minutes as the Wolves missed all of their eight shot attempts. The teams traded free throws for the first three-plus minutes until Bertagnoli converted a driving layup with 1:41 to go to give the WolfPack an 85-80 advantage. The home team converted 4 of 6 free throws from that point on as part of an 11 for 14 effort in overtime to secure the win.

Following a back-and-forth start to the game, JJC put together a 13-3 run that turned a tie game into a 23-13 differential midway through the half. The Wolves maintained their lead the rest of the half; however, an 8-2 closing stretch closed the gap to 39-35 at halftime. Madison College pulled to within a point on several occasions in the second half until a 19-9 scoring run gave the visitors the 11-point edge.

Sophomore JP Pleasant was tops for the WolfPack with 23 points after shooting 9 for 16 overall and 1 of 2 from long range. The native of Beaumont, Texas, added a 4 for 6 effort at the free throw line before fouling out. Pleasant's fifth game with 20 or more points, including two straight, was accompanied by three rebounds and two assists.

McCormick sank five 3-pointers for the second time in the last three games en route to 20 points as the Janesville, Wisconsin, native, now owns four games with at least 20 points and eight games with four or more makes from outside the arc. The 6'1" guard was 5 for 9 overall and 5 for 6 from the charity stripe, while adding a pair of rebounds.

Bertagnoli, a high school teammate of McCormick at Janesville Craig HS, did not score in the first half before finishing with a dozen points for his second straight double-digit scoring game. He finished 4 for 6 shooting and made all four of his free throws, to go along with three boards, two steals, two blocks, and an assist. 



Freshmen Jevon Campbell and Ryen Jones each added nine points, with Campbell leading the WolfPack with four assists. Second year forward Amir Ford came off the bench to pull down a team-high eight rebounds, while adding one point, two blocks, and two steals.

Madison College was 31 for 70 (44%) from the field and 7 of 21 (33%) from three-point range. The home team added a 20 for 31 (64%) effort at the line. The WolfPack took care of the basketball, committing just four turnovers for their lowest turnover output since a four turnover game against Triton College in February 2019. The turnover discrepancy led to a 16-7 lead in points off turnovers, while the Wolves were plus-nine in second chance points after outrebounding the Pack by a 51-33 margin.

Joliet Junior College still maintains a 28-11 advantage in the all-time series.

Up Next:

Madison College (18-3) will play at #18-ranked Bryant & Stratton College (21-5) on Thursday, February 6 for their first road game in more than two weeks. The Bobcats took the all-time series lead at 4-3 following an 82-40 win in Madison last month. The game will be played Mt. Mary University's Bloechl Recreation Center with a 7:30 p.m. start and can be streamed live here.

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