WOOSTER, Ohio - All season the Wittenberg Tigers have had few questions to answer, except for the pressing issue of finding that go-to player with the game on the line. It is possible that question has once again been answered - and once again the reply is that basketball is a team game and the Tigers have plenty of members who can step up in the clutch.
That said, the heroes were many for the Wittenberg Tigers on Saturday in front of a boisterous crowd of 3,200 at the College of Wooster's Timken Gymnasium. Trailing by 12 late in the second half against the arch-rival Fighting Scots, Wittenberg rallied and was thrust over the top on back-to-back three-pointers by sophomore guard Rod Emmons and senior guard Greg Rustad to capture a clutch 68-66 victory. The win improved Wittenberg to 22-3 overall and 15-1 in the North Coast Athletic Conference and it clinched a second consecutive outright NCAC regular season championship.
Wooster led the game by six at intermission and led almost the entire game. The Scots, who dropped to 19-6 overall and 13-3 in the NCAC with a second loss of the 2001-02 season to Wittenberg, constantly hurt the Tigers with the inside-outside tandem of forward Bryan Nelson and Antwyan Reynolds. Nelson, the 2001 NCAC Tournament MVP who almost single-handedly carried the Scots to the tourney title a year ago, scored a game-high 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the floor and 6-of-7 from the free throw line. Reynolds added 11 points, including a huge three-pointer late in the second half that appeared to give Wooster some much-needed momentum.
But Wittenberg wasn't to be denied. Trailing 50-28 at the 13:55 mark of the second half, the Tigers slowly began to whittle the lead down. A thunderous dunk off a steal by junior forward Kevin Longley brought the Tiger crowd to its feet at the 8:32 mark, but the Scots pushed the lead back out to nine at the 4:23 mark on a lay-up by Brian Carlisle. That's when Wittenberg went on a 12-0 run that included two lay-ups by sophomore forward Peter Walker, a free throw by Longley and then the aforementioned three-pointer by Emmons. Then Rustad took a pass in the corner and was fouled while making a three-pointer with 2:03 remaining and made it a four-point play after making the ensuing foul shot.
That gave Wittenberg its first lead since the 4:08 mark of the first half. And from there, the tension was evident in an almost frenzied atmosphere that was just ideal for college athletics, but the Tigers stole the ball from Nelson underneath the basket on an inbounds play with just four seconds left to secure the win and prevent a final shot. Longley shared Tiger scoring honors with junior center B.J. Harris, who finished with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Emmons chipped in with 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field and a 3-of-3 performance from three-point range, while Rustad wound up with 10 points.
The Tiger win earned them the No. 1 seed in the NCAC tournament and home court advantage. Things get under way in the postseason on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 7:45 p.m. against eighth-seeded Earlham. All games can be heard on WBLY 1600 AM in Springfield or via the Internet on Wittenberg's Web site.
Posted by: Ryan Maurer