HUNTINGDON, Pa. — The Catholic University men's basketball team fought off a formidable Juniata team on Wednesday night, winning 66-59 to notch its 14th-consecutive game and reach the 20-win plateau for the second-straight season.

Jesse Hafemeister was dominant for the Cardinals, leading Catholic in virtually every statistical category. The senior dropped 19 points and dished out five assists on the offensive end of the floor while also leading the defensive efforts with eight boards and four steals. Hafemeister shot 9-of-16 from the field and moved into 15th on Catholic's all-time scoring charts with the performance.

Enzo Sechi (13) and Brian Herbert (11) joined Hafemeister in double figures as the Cardinals saw off a spirited fight from the Eagles, who had won five straight coming into this match-up. The victory pushes No. 15 Catholic one step closer to securing the top seed in the upcoming Landmark Conference Tournament. 

The Cardinals began the game with strong defense and did not allow a point for over three-and-a-half minutes to start. Neither team started particularly well on the offensive end of the floor as Juniata responded with an 8-0 to lead 8-4 midway through the half. From then on, the teams exchanged blows but Catholic rode a 25-15 run to a six-point lead at the break.

The offensive execution improved in the second half as Juniata made a run at the Cardinals. After Chase Husted led all first-half scorers with 14, it was balanced scoring that keyed the second-half efforts for the Eagles. Evan Eisenhart and Gabe Guidinger joined Husted with eight points in the second half as Mason Hardy led the Juniata charge with 12.

As for Catholic, Hafemeister dropped 13 in the second half while Sechi pitched in with seven and CJ Ruoff scored all five of his points in the final 20 minutes.

Aaron Kelly's team held Juniata to just 38.6 percent shooting and were able to push its percentages to near-50 (48.2) thanks to a far-superior second half. The Eagles were able to stymie the Cardinals from beyond the three-point line where which they have had good success this season, holding Catholic to just 2-of-15 from deep.

Elsewhere in the conference, second-place Susquehanna fell in overtime to Lycoming to drop to 11-4. With Catholic at 14-1 in conference play, one more win will be enough for the Cardinals to clinch the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.

Catholic will look to secure the first-round bye and home-court advantage throughout the tournament next time out on Saturday afternoon. Kelly's men will welcome Drew, who are also fighting for postseason seeding, to Franny Murray for Senior Day and Alumni Day. Opening tip is set for 2 p.m. with programming for both events occurring during the lead-up to the game.