Wittenberg Struggles Past Ohio Wesleyan

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - It wasn't easy, and it certainly wasn't pretty. But the Wittenberg Tigers pulled out the tough victory Wednesday night, turning back a stern challenge from Ohio Wesleyan with a final score of 65-53.

The win was Wittenberg's 16th in the last 17 games and kept the fifth-ranked Tigers a game behind Wooster in the North Coast Athletic Conference standings heading into Saturday's regular season finales. Wittenberg travels to Allegheny for a 3 p.m. tipoff with the Gators, who were upset by four points Wednesday by Oberlin. Wooster, which captured a triple overtime win on the Tigers' home floor on Saturday, can capture the regular season title outright with a win over Ohio wesleyan at home on Saturday. The last time the two teams met, OWU pushed the Scots to overtime at home before losing.

Ohio Wesleyan, which has just one win over Wittenberg in nearly 30 years, dropped to 12-12 overall and 8-7 in the NCAC, imperiling the Battling Bishops' hopes of earning a home game in the first round of the NCAC Tournament with a top-four finish. The quarterfinal round opens on home sites of the higher seeded teams on Tuesday, Feb. 22. The semifinals are scheduled for Friday, Feb. 25, and the championship game is Saturday, Feb. 26. The highest remaining seed in the tournament earns the right to host the semifinals and finals.

Wittenberg pushed the lead into double digits several times late in the first half before settling for a 37-28 halftime lead. Offensively, the key to the Tigers' effort was five three-pointers by senior wing Andy Bucheit. In the second half, the Bishops closed to within five points on several occasions, the last at 55-50 with 4:41 remaining. However, Wittenberg scored eight straight points, forcing three OWU turnovers, to seal the game.

The Tigers were led by Bucheit's 17 points and four rebounds, while junior post Daniel Russ and Dane Borchers wreaked their usual havoc in the paint. Russ, coming off a career-high 37 points against Wooster, finished with 12 points and five rebounds, including four on the offensive end, and Borchers capped his day with eight points and 12 boards, including six offensive. For the game, Wittenberg, the top team in the nation in terms of rebounding margin and team defense, finished with a 17-rebound advantage in the battle of the boards.

OWU put four players in double figures, but the rebounding margin and a 6-of-22 performance from three-point range did the Bishops in. Ben Chojnacki and Ted Uritus finished with 11 points each and Andy Warnock and Dustin Rudegeair added 10 talies apiece. Bryan King was right behind with nine points.