Tigers Lose Heartbreaker To Marietta In NCAA Second Round

Wittenberg vs. Marietta from Wittenberg University on Vimeo.

Video by Ben McCombs, University Communications

Chris Sullivan

Seth Hill

MARIETTA, Ohio — The Wittenberg Tigers led approximately 37 of the 40 minutes played in their NCAA Division III Tournament second round match-up with host Marietta College. All that matters is which team leads when the final buzzer sounds, however, and the 11th-ranked Pioneers made the game's final shot, a short jumper by freshman Tyler Hammond with just six seconds left that pushed Marietta over the top, 63-62.

Marietta won the Ohio Athletic Conference regular season and tournament championships to advance to its first NCAA Division III Tournament since 1975, and the Pioneers managed to defend their home floor against two storied programs in Centre on Friday and Wittenberg on Saturday. Marietta improved to 27-3 overall and advanced to its first-ever Round of 16 at a site to be determined on Friday, March 11.

Wittenberg, which defeated Marietta in the second round in 1975, ended its season with a mark of 20-9. It was the final appearance in the Red & White for two seniors, guards Chris Sullivan (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) and Seth Hill (Bellefontaine, Ohio/Bellefontaine), both of whom performed admirably in the closing minutes to nearly push the Tigers to an improbable win against a boisterous, partisan home crowd.

The Tigers had the better of play in the first half, building a 34-27 lead by the intermission after briefly trailing 3-2 in the opening moments. The Pioneers fought back early in the second half to pull into a tie at 40 on a three-pointer by Trevor Halter at the 14:24 mark. But it wasn't until Kevin Knab hit a lay-up with 4:04 remaining that Marietta climbed back into the lead, setting the stage for a wild final flurry that featured seven leads changes from that point.

The climactic sequence started with a Marietta turnover shortly after Hill scored a lay-up to close to within 58-57 with 59 seconds remaining. Sullivan then gave the Tigers a 60-58 lead on a three-pointer with 29 seconds left, his fifth of the night. With Marietta's coach, John Vander Wal, signaling for a timeout, a most unlikely hero stepped up as Joe Puch drained a three-pointer with 19 seconds left. Hill was then fouled on a drive at the other end of the floor, and after a timeout he calmly drained both free throws to put the Tigers back ahead.

After another timeout, Hammond took the in-bounds pass and went the length of the court to hit a jumper in the lane, even with the Tigers' Jacob Weide (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead) rising up to contest the shot. Sullivan's three-point attempt at the other end was off target, ending the Tigers' hopes.

Sullivan led both teams with 17 points in the game, 14 of which came in the first half. A night after going scoreless for the first time since his sophomore season, Sullivan his 6-of-9 from the floor and his only miss from long distance was the final desparate heave under duress. Hill added 11 points in 24 quality minutes off the bench, hitting 4-of-5 from the floor, including his only three-point attempt, and the aforementioned free throws to go along with five rebounds.

Also of note was the play of the junior post tandem of Clayton Black (Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster) and Alex Brandt (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy). Black finished with 12 points, nine rebounds, three blocked shots and two assists, while Brandt added 10 points and seven boards.

The Tigers shot 58 percent from the floor in the first half and 53 percent for the game, including an 8-of-15 performance from three-point range. The Tigers won the rebounding battle 28-24, but they committed 19 critical turnovers, compared to 12 for the Pioneers, who shot 47 percent for the game but, more importantly, made 64 percent in the second half. Both teams made 25 field goals and eight three-pointers — the scoring difference wound up being Marietta's 5-of-10 from the free throw line, compared to just 4-of-4 for Wittenberg.