Tigers Avoid Comeback Bid to Extend their Winning Streak to Nine

Springfield, OH - The Tigers took on the Lions of Mount St. Joseph in hopes of extending their winning streak to nine early in the season and were successful in doing so, downing the Lions, 71-61. The win moved the Tigers to 9-1 on the season, while the Lions fell to 4-7.

The nine-game winning streak is the longest for Wittenberg Men's Basketball since the 2019-20 season. En route to the NCAA Division III Tournament Sweet 16, the Tigers compiled streaks of 14 wins in a row to open the season and 12 wins in a row to capture the NCAC regular season title.

Early in the first half, the Lions had the Tigers on the ropes as Mount St. Joseph built an 18-10 lead at the halfway point. However, the Tigers put together a stunning 28-2 run over the final 11 minutes of the first half to take control of the game. Spence Davidson (Lebanon, OH / Lebanon) came off the bench to provide a scoring spark, as he drained a three-pointer late in the shot clock and converted a traditional three-point play as well. But balance was the key as all 11 players who saw action in the first half made contributions, capped by a three-pointer to beat the halftime buzzer by Eddie Brown (Lewis Center, OH / Olentangy Orange) to put the Tigers up 18 heading into the locker room.

In the second half, Wittenberg's offense cooled considerably, which allowed the Lions to rally, closing to within five points with just over two minutes remaining. The Tigers were able to hang on, however, in large part thanks to clutch three-pointers by Cal Bavineau (Dexter, MI / Dexter) and Noah Frayer (Odenton, MD / SPIRE Academy) and eight free throws for Tyler Galluch (Springfield, OH / Catholic Central) in 10 attempts in the last five minutes to end his day with 22 points. Galluch finished the game 15-of-20 from the line.

Team Leaders

• Galluch's 22 points led the Tigers. Brown was his only teammate in double digits with 14.
• Dawson Scott (New Castle, IN / New Castle) pulled down nine rebounds as Brown finished with seven and Galluch added six.
• Galluch also paced the team in assists with three, while Bavineau and Davidson each tallied three.
• Kyle Kenney (Centerville, OH / Centerville) rejected two Lion shots and Bavineau added two steals on the defensive end.

Team Comparison

• The Tigers went 19-47 (40.4%) from the field, 8-21 (38.1%) from long range and 25-36 (69.4%) from the line. They totaled 36 rebounds, 10 assists, and only committed four turnovers and scored 10 second-chance points, 18 in the paint while players off the bench totaled 12 Tiger points.
• The Lions shot 23-60 (38.3%) overall, 6-20 (30%) from three-point range and 9-14 (64.3%) from the charity stripe. The Lions pulled down 33 rebounds while tallying six assists to equal their six turnovers. Of their 61 points, 13 were second-chance points, 32 in the paint and their bench players accounts for 25 points.

Next Up

The Tigers will return to Pam Evans Smith Arena after Christmas to take on the Asbury Eagles on December 30th at noon as they will look to extend their win streak to double digits.

Witten by: Grant Martin and Ryan Maurer