Langston Hood
Contributing Writer
The Wooster men’s basketball team suffered an unfortunate loss at the hands of the Wabash Little Giants on Saturday, Feb. 12. Wooster celebrated its senior day in preparation for the important matchup with Wabash. The Little Giants marched into the Timken Gymnasium intent on spoiling the day’s proceedings. Wabash was the only team ahead of Wooster in the NCAC basketball standings headed into Saturday’s meeting, so this game was pivotal if Wooster wanted to preserve any hope of making a late push for the regular season crown.
The game began with sloppy play from both sides as jitters and a rowdy crowd did not seem to benefit either team; both teams turned the ball over and missed three-pointers during their first offensive possessions. However, Jamir Billings ’25 would end this drought on the next trip down the court, drilling a three-pointer to give the Scots an early lead. Billings orchestrated the Scots’ offense early on as he scored or assisted on each of Wooster’s first 15 points, setting his teammates up and doing it himself when necessary. Najee Hardaway ’22, capped off this run for the Scots with a three ball assisted by Billings to give the Scots a five-point lead at 15-10.
Wabash answered each time the Scots took an early lead. The game saw three lead changes before Wabash knotted the game at 17-17. Following a missed layup by Wooster, the Little Giants, with undoubtedly the worst mascot in the NCAC, went on a run of their own as their three-point shooting excellence was on full display. They would nail two in a row to go up six points to punctuate a 10-0 run that gave them an eight point lead about halfway through the first half. Eventually, Wooster was able to stop the bleeding with a Hardaway trip to the free throw line.
However, this was only temporary, as Wooster was unable to find its footing for the rest of the first half as Wabash shot 47% from the field and 41% from beyond the arch in the first half. Wabash’s offense was fluid and potent, as the Little Giants got to their spots and were able to generate quality chances throughout the first half to extend their advantage to 15 points heading into the break.
The Scots emerged from the locker room with more determination than they played with in the first half as Turner Kurt ’23 started the Wooster run with a jumper that cut the lead to 13. This started a trend for Wooster, as they traded buckets with Wabash while slowly imposing themselves on the defensive side of the ball. Inspired play from Hardaway, Kurt and two made free throws from Carter Warstler ’24, cut the Wabash lead all the way down to two. At the same time, the Scots’ defense held Wabash scoreless for a three-minute stretch.
However, the Little Giants would not be so easily dispatched. Their response was immediate as the program’s all-time leading scorer, Jack Davidson, hit a three-pointer, scoring his first field goal of the second half and showing that his 17 percent shooting from beyond the arch in the first half would not continue into the second. Just like that, it seemed as if Wabash had reawakened as public enemy number one; Tyler Watson, a Wabash senior, scored 11 points in just under two minutes to stun the Scots.
Though Wooster had already proven that they could endure scoring runs from Wabash, there was a certain feeling that this run would close out the game. Enthusiastic fans had the air taken out of their sails, as it seemed like Wabash could not miss for the remainder of the game. The two points that separated Wabash and Wooster grew into seven, then 14 as Wooster would only pull within nine points of Wabash. This all came after the 18-4 run started by Watson and proved to be too much for the Scots to overcome. Wabash’s pristine shooting was reflected by its field goal percentages, as the Little Giants showcased one of their best shooting performances of the year. They shot 55.6 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from beyond the arch, which ultimately proved to be too much for the Scots to handle.
The Scots did not do themselves many favors, as they seemed to have a way back into the game by way of the free throw line, yet couldn’t convert on many trips. Leaving 14 points at the free throw line, the Scots were unable to overcome the incredible shooting from Wabash. Many other metrics indicate that Saturday’s competition could have been much closer; however, Wabash’s free throw percentage was more than 50 points higher than that of Wooster’s. This, combined with Wabash’s three-point shooting proficiency, handed the Little Giants a victory over Wooster in this tense conference matchup.
Farewell to the graduating members of the Fighting Scots men’s basketball team: Hamilton Johnson, Khaylen Mahdi, Brandon Styers and student assistant Alec Williams. Thank you for dedicating your time to our college. Once a Fighting Scot, always a Fighting Scot.
Wooster will seek redemption in its final conference game at Wittenberg before the NCAC Conference Tournament tips off on Tuesday, Feb. 22.