SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — The Wittenberg Tigers pulled ahead early and kept visiting Otterbein at arm's length the rest of the way in an 87-73 victory over the Cardinals.
It was Wittenberg's second straight win after the first four-game losing streak in more than a decade. The Tigers head into a nine-day layoff with a 3-5 overall record, while Otterbein fell to 1-8 on the season.
The Tigers never put together that big run to put the game away, but they never trailed after taking a 7-6 lead two minutes into the game on a lay-up by junior post Jeromy Romero (Delaware, Ohio/Hayes). Wittenberg led 43-30 at halftime and the lead expanded to as many as 20 points with 7:02 left in the game. Otterbein cut the deficit to 11 in the late-going but the Tigers maintained control throughout.
The keys to the game for Wittenberg were a 39-27 rebounding advantage and a season-best 52 percent shooting performance from the field. Two players in particular stood out for the Tigers as junior wing Kevin Murray (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) scored a career-high 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and 6-of-6 from the free throw line and senior wing Brandan Barabino (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) poured in career-highs of 17 points and 14 rebounds, the latter being a game high. Barabino added a game-high five assists.
Romero and junior wing Gregg Hill (Farmington Hills, Mich./Redford Union) each finished with 11 points and a combined five assists. Senior post Sam Gregory (Gainesville, Fla./Oak Hall) added 10 points and three rebounds in 14 productive minutes off the bench.
Otterbein's Adam Wells led all players with 30 points, thanks in part to 8-of-16 shooting from three-point range. Cory Ratai added 12 points before fouling out late in the game.