SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — A game of inches. Trailing 70-64 with one minute remaining on Senior Recognition Night against Wabash, the Wittenberg Tigers knocked down one three-pointer, forced a Little Giant miss and then went for the tie. However, a three-pointer by sophomore wing Josh McKee (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) seemed to touch every part of the rim before spinning off to the left, sealing a 72-69 loss.
The defeat snapped a four-game winning streak in which the Tigers had seemingly found their offensive rhythm. After a stellar first half, in which Wittenberg shot better than 60 percent and led throughout, the Tigers went cold over the final 20 minutes. As a result, Wabash moved into the driver's seat for the NCAC Tournament's No. 2 seed, improving to 16-7 overall and 11-4 in the conference, tied with Allegheny for second place. Wittenberg fell to 18-6 overall and 10-5 in the NCAC.
After taking a 43-34 lead into the locker room at halftime, the Tigers came out of the locker room well enough and led by nine points with 16:57 left. That's when the Little Giants went on a 9-0 run, and the Tigers' offense went cold. The final sequence was set up when senior guard David Nowicki (Carmel, Ind./Westfield)drilled a long three-pointer to draw the Tigers within three points. After McKee rebounded a miss at the defensive end, he got a decent look. But his shot rimmed out to seal the Tigers' fate and a Wabash season sweep.
McKee finished with eight points and Nowicki added six points, four assists and two steals. Sophomore forward Michael Cooper (Springfield, Ohio/South) led Wittenberg with 12 points and four rebounds, while junior guard Chris Sullivan (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) added 11 points and three assists. A key team statistic, along with the second-half shooting woes (37 percent from the field, including 3-of-14 from three-point range), was Wabash's 34-26 rebounding edge.
The Tigers head to Oberlin for a 3 p.m. tip-off on Saturday, Feb. 20, to end the season. Wittenberg is guaranteed a top-four finish in the NCAC for the 20th straight year, meaning a home NCAC Tournament game on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Tip time against an opponent to be determined is 6 p.m.