MEADVILLE, Pa. — Championships aren't simply handed to teams - they are earned. If the Wittenberg Tigers go on to win any championships in the 2005-06 season, they will likely look back on Saturday's hard-fought 61-56 victory at Allegheny as a pivotal moment.
The Gators, who fell to 6-10 overall and just 2-6 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, gave Wittenberg all it could handle, pulling out to a commanding 35-26 halftime edge after leading by as many as 13 points during the first half. But the final 20 minutes were won decisively by No. 1 ranked Wittenberg, which improved to 16-1 overall and 7-1 in the NCAC.
The lead began to shrink at the 15:16 mark of the second half. After Allegheny's Casey McCloskey hit a jumper to put the Gators ahead by 11 points, the Tigers finally mounted a charge, starting with a three-pointer by freshman wing Tyler Howard at the 14:56 mark. The lead finally evaporated with 3:35 remaining on a tip-in by junior wing Billy Bowen.
After Allegheny hit a free throw, Howard gave Wittenberg the lead for good on a jumper at the 2:39 mark. After the two teams traded several possessions and scoring opportunities, junior guard Pat Denbow hit the biggest shot of his Wittenberg career, a three-pointer with 44 seconds left that gave the Tigers a four-point advantage. The Tigers made 5-of-6 free throws in the closing seconds to gain the win, including 3-of-4 from senior wing Phil Steffes.
Senior post Dane Borchers had the biggest game of his career at a most opportune time. He hit for a career-high 29 points to go along with 10 rebounds, both totals that led all players in the game. Borchers hit for 10-of-13 shots from the field and a perfect 9-of-9 from the free throw line, including the final two in the game that put it out of reach. Borchers' previous career high in points was 23 in a double overtime loss to John Carroll in the second round of last year's NCAA Division III Tournament.
Senior post Daniel Russ was saddled with foul problems for much of the game, yet he still managed a solid four-point, six-rebound, three-assist, three-block effort in 26 minutes, while Howard was clutch off the bench with nine points and three rebounds. The Tigers won the battle of the boards 33-27 and committed five less turnovers than the Gators, allowing Wittenberg to overcome better shooting by Allegheny, including a 7-of-16 performance from three-point range.
Allegheny was led by Casey McCloskey, who finished with 25 points and five assists, and Bill Babe with 14 points.