Wittenberg Takes Down Top-Ranked Wooster - Defense Keys Win; Tigers Move Into First-Place Tie

WOOSTER, Ohio - The top-ranked defense in the North Coast Athletic Conference met the top-ranked offense on Saturday, and in the end the latter proved no match for the former as the Wittenberg Tigers stunned top-ranked and previously unbeaten arch-rival Wooster on its home floor by a 69-51 final score.

The win, the Tigers' eighth straight this season and the eighth in the last nine regular season meetings with the Scots, improved Wittenberg to 13-2 and 5-1 in the NCAC. Wooster, which has gotten even with five NCAC Tournament titles in the last six years, dropped to 14-1 overall and 5-1 in the conference.

Wittenberg took a 10-8 lead on a three-point play by junior post Daniel Russ at the 12:56 mark of the first half and never allowed the Scots to come back. For the rest of the first half, Wittenberg's lead slowly expanded until a 7-2 run to close the opening 20 minutes earned the Tigers a 30-20 advantage. They key? Defense, in the form of 24 percent shooting by Wooster, including a 2-of-12 performance from three-point range.

In the second half, Wooster made its runs, but the Tigers came up with the answers at just the right moments. Less than 30 seconds after Wooster's Tom Port hit a three-pointer to close the margin to five points with 13:56 remaining, the Wittenberg junior wing Kenny Brady came right back with a clutch trey of his own. Just 28 seconds after Wooster's Blake Mealer hit a pair of free throws to close the margin to six points at the 9:24 mark of the second half, Russ stepped out and buried the only three-pointer he attempted in the game. And then after Wooster's Matt Schlingman made a layup at the 6:17 mark, Wittenberg responded with a flourish, closing the game on a 17-5 run.

The second-half keys? Wittenberg outrebounded the Scots, 21-10, to end the game with an 11-board advantage, just one short of the team's average, which ranks second nationally and first in the NCAC. The Scots managed just 29 percent shooting from the field, including a 4-of-11 mark from long distance. And the Tigers finished things off with 20-of-22 free throw shooting for the game, including 8-of-8 inside the final two minutes.

Russ led all scorers with 16 points, and he added five rebounds. Junior post Dane Borchers added 14 points and six boards, senior wing Andy Bucheit chipped in with 12 points and three rebounds, senior guard Kenny Molz capped his night with 12 points and four boards off the bench and Brady wound up with nine points and four caroms in 22 effective minutes off the pine.

Wooster got 11 points from Schlingman, but the Scots had no answers for the Tiger frontline and got a 3-of-13 shooting performance from leading scorer Tom Port.

The Tigers now have two wins over No. 1 ranked teams in 2004-05 after beating NAIA Division II poll leader Cedarville on Dec. 4 and NCAA Division III poll leader Wooster on Jan. 15. It was the second time in six years that Wooster has spent exactly one week at No. 1, and each time the Tigers have ended that brief reign with a win on the Scots' home court. In addition, Wittenberg graduate Steve Moore, Wooster's head coach, was denied his 400th career win.