Prior to last week, while the menís basketball team had started the season 12-4 and climbed back into the national top 25 rankings, the team still lacked a signature win. When the team traveled to archrival Wittenberg University last Saturday, it finally made a statement.
Traveling to Springfield, Ohio is never an easy trip. Wooster (9-0 NCAC, 14-4 overall) and Wittenberg (5-3, 13-4) is arguably one of the best rivalries in Div. III, and the Tigers were off to their best start in three years. Wittenbergís fans were amped up for this contest ó the announced attendance was 2,275, far and away the Tigersí biggest home crowd this season.
In the gameís first eight minutes, the Tigers quickly jumped out to a 16-5 lead, putting the Scots in an early hole. With about eight minutes left in the first half, the Tigers had built a comfortable 21-11 lead. From there, however, the Scots snapped out of their long-range shooting drought and lived up to their preseason hype, upending the Tigers 66-56.
The Scots had struggled through a fairly pronounced shooting slump in the three games leading up to the Wittenberg game ó knocking down just 19 percent of their three-point attempts. Against Wittenberg, the Scotsí long range struggles persisted, starting 0-for-8 from downtown. When it mattered, though, the Scots were finally able to knock down the big shots.
Matt Fegan í12 helped break the ice, knocking down the Scotsí first three of the game and brought the Scots within a seven-point deficit of 21-14. After a layup by Ian Franks í11, Nathan Balch í11 knocked down another three to bring the Scots within a bucket, 21-19. On the other end, Wittenberg knocked down one free throw shot before Justin Hallowell í12 drained another long-range shot to tie the ball game at 22. From there, the Scots never looked back and went into the half with a 30-25 lead. In the last eight minutes of the first half, the Scots went on a 19-4 run and this eventually proved to be the difference in the game.
The Tigers did mount a rally early in the second half, and tied the game at 44 with 10 minutes left in the second half. Fegan and Franks, however, immediately knocked a pair of threes to give the Scots a 50-44 lead and take momentum back from the Tigers. The closest the Tigers even came from that point was a four-point differential.
Though Franks led all scorers with 20 points, Hallowell provided the biggest performance of the night. Hallowell recorded the first double-double of his career with 13 points and 12 rebounds. In the previous three games against Allegheny College, Earlham College and Oberlin College, Hallowell struggled through the worst shooting slump of his career, hitting just one of 20 three-point attempts. Saturday night Hallowell bounced back to hit 3-for-8 from behind the arc, and grabbed 12 defensive rebounds. As a team, the Scots were nine of 27 from three-point range. Off the bench, Fegan was the third Scot scorer in double figures with 10 points.
The team carried this momentum into Wednesdayís game against Hiram (5-4, 8-10). While the Scots started slowly and led by just two at the half against the Terriers, the Scots caught fire in the second half eventually coasted to a 67-43 win. According to head coach Steve Moore, the team was able to pull away late in the game because of improved play and better looks on the perimeter. ìWe were getting good shots,” said Moore.
For the second game in a row, the Scots were able to know shots from long range, shooting 10-for-26 on the night. Hallowell was 4-for-7 from behind the three-point line, with all of his points coming from downtown.
One of the gameís most encouraging signs came from Nathan Balch í11. Balch has had a quiet first half of the season, averaging just under 10 points per game and shooting 36 percent from the field. On Wednesday, though, Balch posted a season-high 16 points and grabbed five rebounds.
The wins give the Scots a significant cushion in the standings. Wooster is now two games in front of second-place Wabash College (6-2, 11-5). The loss likely puts any chance of a regular season conference title out of reach for Wittenberg, which is now deadlocked in a four-way tie for third place.
The race for the regular season title now looks like a two-team race between Wooster and Wabash. In their first meeting this season, the Scots beat the Little Giants 78-60 on Dec. 20 in the Timken Gymnasium. In order for Wabash to have any shot at a share of the conference title, Wabash will have to beat Wooster on Feb. 7 in Crawfordsville, Ind. If the Scots are able to beat Wabash next Sunday, they will have an inside track to their sixth straight NCAC regular season title.
Great teams are able to manufacture wins, even when they arenít playing their best games and their shots arenít falling. Thatís exactly what the Scots had done for three straight games. In the last two games, however, all phases came together for the Scots. The team has played with more focus. ìWe are starting to gel. Iíve liked our mental approach. Weíre having fun, but weíve been intense,” said† Moore.
Moore hopes wins over the Tigers and Terriers can propel them through the rest of the regular season. After a slew of close calls, Moore can hope his team has finally hit its stride.