Springfield, OH – The No. 2 Wittenberg men's basketball traveled to Hiram College on Saturday afternoon, improving upon their 12-game win-streak moving to 13-0 (6-0 NCAC) on the season, taking down the Terriers 100-82 in the North Coast Athletic Conference showdown. This is the second time in two years the Red and White have posted 100-point games, after taking down Emory 100-88 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 2019. This is the first time the Tigers have posted triple digits in an NCAC contest since a 107-74 win on the road at Oberlin in 2010. The Tigers kept their momentum rolling, coming off a big 80-63 midweek road win at Denison on Wednesday night. The Red and White were led by Jake Bertemes, knocking down 8 of 10 shots from the floor, tallying 21 points on the day. Bertemes added three assists and two rebounds to his total on the afternoon. Wittenberg would finish with a total of six Tigers recording double figures on the afternoon. James Johnson notched his second double-double of the season, posting 12 points with 12 rebounds on the day. With all five starters finishing in double-figures, Rashaad Ali-Shakir provided 12 points and two rebounds, coming off the bench for the Red and White.
Game Breakdown
Wittenberg owned a 51-33 lead at the half, as the Tigers jumped out to an early advantage over the Terriers and didn't look back. Connor Seipel put the first points of the game on the board for the Tigers. Wittenberg kept the pressure on through the early going after Jordan Pumroy knocked down a triple, the Tigers went back inside to Seipel extending their lead out to 12-4 with just over 16 minutes left in the half. Another three from Pumroy and two jumpers converted by Pumroy, helped keep the Tiger lead at 29-18 with just under 10 minutes remaining in the half. Bertemes tallied 19 of his 21 points in the first half, converting on all eight of his attempts from the floor. The Tigers knocked down nearly 60 percent from the floor in the first half, converting on 33 percent from beyond the arc. Landon Martin found a surge late in the half, posting seven points, finishing with two rebounds and two assists at the break. Wittenberg didn't slow down in the second half, knocking down 51 percent of their shots from the floor, including 6 of 11 from beyond the arc. Johnson came alive for the Tiger offense, knocking down all four of his shots from the floor, adding five rebounds, two blocked shots to go along with an assist and a steal. Martin didn't let the break ruin his rhythm, converting on 4 of 5 shots from the floor including 2 of 2 from deep range for 12 points. Seipel added eight points and five rebounds through the final 20-minutes of action, adding two steals to his total. Ali-Shakir went 4 of 4 from the charity stripe down the stretch, tallying seven second-half points for the Tigers.
From The Bench
"Any win on the road in our conference is a good one. The guys were really aggressive offensively and shared the ball so well. 21 assists on 36 makes is fantastic," said Head Coach Matt Croci.
UP NEXT
Wittenberg will return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 15 hosting the Little Giants from Wabash College. Tip-off from Pam Evans Smith Arena is set for 7:00 PM.