Meadville, PA - The No. 6 Wittenberg University men's basketball team traveled to Meadville, PA to take on Allegheny College, battling the Gators down to the wire and securing the 77-75 win on the road. The Tigers move to 18-1 (11-1 NCAC) on the season, having taken the first game of the series 78-60 from Gators from Pam Evans Smith Arena. It was a forty-minute battle between the Tigers and the Gators, as four Tigers posted double figures on the day.  Landon Martin lead the scoring charge with 21 followed by James Johnson adding 19. Johnson tallied his second double-double of the season, grabbing a team-high 16 rebounds. Connor Seipel lead in assists with 4. Down 74-73 with just under a minute to go, Johnson hit the go-ahead lay-up for the Red and White, 75-74.  Jordan Pumroy would earn his way to the free-throw line in the closing moments of the game, helping extend the Tiger advantage and seal the win at 77-75.

Game Breakdown

The Red and White started off strong with Jake Bertemes putting up the first points of the game for Wittenberg. The two sides battled it out as Wittenberg held a 15-9 advantage with just over 13 minutes in the half, coming off a Levi Boettcher triple from the Johnson assist. Allegheny brought things back to even at 20-20 with just under 10 minutes before a six-point Wittenberg scoring run helped send the Tigers into the break with a 35-31 lead. Johnson tallied 13 of 19 total points in the first half, knocking down 5 of 8 from the floor, pulling down eight rebounds. Martin and Bertemes each added six points in the first half to get things going, as the Tigers knocked down 15 of 33 from the floor to open the game. 

Coming out of the locker room the Tigers and Gators fought for the advantage heading down the stretch. Martin tallied 15 points in the second half, converting on 6 of 7 free-throw attempts and knocking down 4 of 7 shots from the floor. Seipel added 10 points to the Tiger's second-half effort, pulling down two rebounds and dishing out two assists. Wittenberg shot 53 percent from the floor through the final 20 minutes of action, knocking down 15 of 28 shots from the floor. 

From The Bench

"Gritty road win today. The guys just kept fighting and grinding. James [Johnson] made an incredible basket to take the lead and how about Pumroy knocking down two free throws to seal it," said head coach Matt Croci.

Up Next

The Tigers are returning home to Pam Evans Smith Arena on February 5th to play the Big Red of Denison University at 7:30 pm.