WOOSTER, Ohio— For the 115th time, the Fighting Scots of Wooster and the #10 Tigers of Wittenberg met on the hardwood. In one of college basketball's greatest small college rivalries, Wooster entered Saturday night on an eight-game winning streak, while the Tigers entered on a 14-game win-streak to start the season. Wittenberg overcame the Fighting Scots on Saturday night, pulling away late to win 86-75. Wittenberg trailed 38-36 at halftime, but the Tigers put together a 50-point second half to win big on the road. Wittenberg's win at Wooster is their first in seven years, and head coach Matt Croci's first win against Wooster as the Tigers' head coach.
HOW IT HAPPENED: Wittenberg and Wooster exchanged blows back and forth in the first 10 minutes of play, before the Tigers found themselves down by as many as nine in the first half. Wittenberg managed to utilize a 9-2 run to cap off the first 20 minutes of play, as the Tigers trailed at the break 38-36. Wittenberg controlled the pace in the early minutes of the second half, but could not pull away from the Fighting Scots. As the half rolled on with the Tigers in control, the final 10 minutes of play featured a 12-2 run that sealed the deal for the red and white. Jordan Pumroy helped put the Tigers up 11 with under three minutes to play, as the sophomore guard converted a four-point play on a missed three-point attempt. After drawing a foul on the triple and making the first two free-throws, Pumroy clanked the third attempt, but managed to grab his own rebound and lay it in to give the Tigers a double-digit lead. Wittenberg was too much for Wooster in the end, winning the game 86-75.
WHO STOOD OUT: Jacob Bertemes (22), Pumroy (21), Chad Roy (18) and Landon Martin (13), stood as the Tiger's double-digit scorers on Saturday night. Pumroy dominated in all facets of the game, as the sophomore recorded a double-double with a ten-rebound performance. Bertemes led the Tigers with three assists on a night that saw the Tigers' only total nine dimes as a team.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Wittenberg converted 24 of 32 free-throw attempts in the game, while Wooster connected on seven of their nine attempts. Wittenberg also managed to shoot 54% from the floor and 50% from three-point land, with Wooster shooting 44% from the floor in the game. While Wittenberg and Wooster both recorded 34 rebounds in the game, Wooster totaled 42 points in the paint to Wittenberg's 38.
UP NEXT: The road does not get any easier for the Tigers, as Wittenberg welcomes OWU to Springfield on Wednesday for a 7:30 P.M. tipp-off.
.@WittenbergHoops. 15-0 pic.twitter.com/LZJPipmPIS
— Wittenberg Athletics (@WittAthletics) January 14, 2018
"This is an important league game... I'm not sure if our guys felt pressure, but they definitely knew how important a game this was" -@mattcroci #TigerUp #d3h pic.twitter.com/D6CuDrFumN
— Wittenberg Athletics (@WittAthletics) January 14, 2018
.@wittenberghoops beats Wooster 86-75 on the road to move to 15-0 #TigerUp #d3h pic.twitter.com/2ZJdYkiStM
— Wittenberg Athletics (@WittAthletics) January 14, 2018