Men's Basketball Catholic Athletic Communications

Cardinals Dominate Colonels, Advance to Landmark Championship Game

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Catholic University led wire-to-wire in the Landmark Conference Semifinals, defeating Wilkes 96-76 to secure a spot in the championship game for the sixth time in program history. 

Brian Herbert scored a career-high 26 points to lead the Cardinal offensive efforts while CJ Ruoff scored 19 points off the bench. 

Catholic shot nearly 52 percent from the field while making 30-of-35 free throws in an efficient and dominant offensive performance. 

The Cardinals built a 12-point lead with 8:33 to play in the first half as Justin Green scored on a backdoor feed from Herbert. The lead swelled to 17 with 7:43 remaining as Herbert scored four straight to make it 30-13. The Cardinals led by as many as 19 in the first 20 minutes before Wilkes trimmed it to 10 at the break. 

The Colonels sat within 11 points with 14:48 remaining in regulation, but Catholic ripped off a 15-0 run to build a 68-42 with 10:31 to play. The lead reached 32 on a Herbert three-pointer with 7:34 left in the contest. The lead remained 25 or higher until the final 3:34 as Wilkes trimmed it down to 20 to close out the contest. 

QUICK HITTERS
  • Catholic improves to 9-10 all-time in Landmark Tournament contests as they head to the championship for the sixth time and second straight season. The defending champs have now defeated Wilkes in the semis in back-to-back seasons. 
  • The Cardinals' 96 points ties the Landmark Conference Tournament record for points in a game set by Moravian against Drew in 2018. 
  • Not only are Herbert's 26 points a career-high, the junior scored the second-most points in a Landmark Conference Tournament game in program history, sitting only behind Bryson Fonville's 33 vs. Susquehanna in 2016. 
  • The Cardinal bench was tremendous, led by Ruoff's 19 points, a new career-high. Googie Seidman gave the Cardinals nine points off the bench, making seven free throws, while Ethan Hinds scored eight points and grabbed six rebounds for the Cardinals. 
  • Catholic shut down one of the top players in the Landmark Conference in Lucas Lesko, holding him to 3-of-16 shooting. 

Saturday's Landmark Conference Championship will be the first-ever championship game featuring the Cardinals and Drew. Tip is set for 4 p.m.