SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The Wittenberg Tigers fell behind 10-0 in the first three minutes and never fully recovered as 11th-ranked Thomas More pulled away for a 71-51 road victory.
The game was Wittenberg's first in more than a week as the Tiger student-athletes focused on final exams. Wittenberg dropped to 3-5 overall on the 2012-13 season, while Thomas More improved to 9-1.
The Tigers initially rallied from that early 10-point deficit, scoring eight straight points. However, Thomas More responded with an 11-point burst of its own to take control of the game. By halftime, the Saints held a commanding 44-25 lead.
Over the final 20 minutes, Thomas More pushed the lead out to as many as 26 points, thanks in large part to a tremendous rebounding advantage. By game's end, the Saints had outrebounded Wittenberg 46-26, including a whopping 15 offensive rebounds that led to 13 second-chance points.
For the game, Thomas More shot 47 percent from the field, including 9-of-19 from three-point range. Three Saints scored in double figures as nine different players found their way into the scoring column.
Wittenberg was limited to 33 percent shooting from the field, including a 7-of-20 performance from long distance. Individually, junior Amber Rice (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) led all players with 20 points, while sophomore Karen Daniel-Hamberg (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) added eight points on 4-of-5 shooting off the bench and sophomore Katelyn Haralamos (Maineville, Ohio/Kings) turned in a fine all-around game with nine points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists.
The Tigers are back in action Tuesday, Dec. 18, at home against Franklin before a 10-day lay-off. Wittenberg will close out the first half of the season with the Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic Dec. 28-29.