Unfortunately, it was the visiting Trojans that kept control of things for the majority of the remainder.

Goshen (8-11, 1-5) trimmed a 16-point deficit with 5:24 remaining to just a four-point margin with 30 seconds to play, but a costly pair of turnovers and made Taylor free throws down the stretch kept things from getting any closer. Despite a 22 to 10 Goshen run over the game’s final five minutes, Taylor escaped with a 71-65 win, the Trojans’ first at the Roman Gingerich Center in four years.

“That was a little bit of desire and human nature coming through for us late tonight,” said Cory Furman, Goshen assistant coach. “We knew we had to make plays to even be in a position to win, and we had some guys do just that. Still, we had several mistakes that kept things from getting even closer. We’re still collectively learning just what it takes to compete at the level we want to within this conference.”

That level of competition was starkly lower for the Leafs for the majority of the evening, as Goshen fell behind by a 2-8 count to open play before spurting out on a nine to two run to make it an 11-10 Leafs’ lead with 13:34 remaining in the first half. Taylor then punched in 13 of the game's next 15 points to grab a 23-13 lead with 9:35 to play, and would eventually surge ahead by a 33-19 score with 3:32 to play in the period. A made three pointer by senior Matt Crawford and four made free throws from freshman Errick McCollum cut the halftime lead to 35-26, however, and again the Leafs seemed to avoid possible disaster.

Taylor rang in the second half with another three pointer, however, and scored 11 of the second period’s first 15 points to capture its largest lead of the game — 16 points — with a 46-30 lead at the 14:49 mark. Goshen cut the Trojans’ advantage to 13 points on three occasions and to 11 points (50-39) with 10:03 to play, but a mini-run from Taylor again made it a 59-43 lead with 5:24 on the game clock.

It was then that Goshen was able to piece together its strongest surge of the night, without the benefit of flawless execution on either end of the floor. The Leafs turned a 59-43 Taylor lead into a 69-65 game despite turning the ball over twice and shooting just six of 13 from the field during that stretch. Taylor, meanwhile, made just one field goal during the Leafs’ run, turning the ball over three times while making just nine of 14 free throws.

“We were able to force some turnovers in the final five minutes, but we also gave away some opportunities on our end offensively,” Furman said. “As Coach Daugherty says, conference games usually come down to one or two possessions on each end of the court. Even tonight, when we were outplayed for the most part, it still came down to that.”

Goshen was able to make its move thanks to connecting on three of six shots from three-point range during its push, with McCollum knocking in two of three. The freshman from Canton, Ohio scored a game-high 26 points on six of 13 shooting, knocking in 17 during the second half and nine points in the game’s final 5:24. McCollum added six rebounds, three assists, a block and two steals in 29 minutes of work.

“There is no question that Errick has a unique ability to score the basketball,” Furman said, “but we’re trying to escalate even his limits of just how good he can be. He can do even more, on both ends of the court and in how he can lead.”

Junior Brice Hartman was next in line for Goshen in the scoring column, charting 14 points on a six of 10 shooting effort. Hartman grabbed five rebounds. Crawford added 11 points and four boards, while senior David Haire scored eight points.

The Leafs struggled collectively shooting the basketball, knocking in just 37.3 percent of their shots from the floor (22 of 59). Meanwhile, Goshen allowed Taylor to scorch the nets at a 57.1 percent clip, the team’s fourth highest field goal percentage allowed this season. That clip was outdone by Grace’s 64.5 percent shooting effort on Saturday — the Leafs’ highest field goal percentage allowed to date.

“We must get better defensively if we want to have a chance to win on a game by game basis,” Furman said. “Right now, it’s one of those things where we’re not shooting particularly well as a team, and that puts a greater onus on each defensive possession. We’ll continue to work and teach. There’s a lot of basketball yet to be played.”

Incredibly, the tests get even harder for the Leafs, as the team will travel to the nation’s fifth-ranked team — Huntington University — this Saturday. Game time is set for 3 p.m. in the Merillat Complex.