Springfield, OH – The No. 4 Wittenberg University men's basketball team made their 29th North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament appearance on Tuesday night, taking down the Ohio Wesleyan Battling Bishops 69-55 in the quarterfinal matchup from Pam Evans Smith Arena. The Tigers were led by Connor Seipel in both scoring and rebound, posting his 16th double-double of the season, tallying 18 points and grabbing 25 rebounds. Seipel was just four rebounds shy of tying the school record for single-game rebounding (29) set back in 1956. Wittenberg finished with three players posting double figures on the night, as Rashaad Ali-Shakir provided 14 points coming off the bench for the Red and White, knocking down 4 of 9 from beyond the arc. Jordan Pumroy added 11 points, converting on 4 of 8 from the floor, hitting on 3 of 7 from deep range, while adding four rebounds and three assists to his total. Wittenberg shot 38 percent from the field as a team, knocking down 26 of 67 shots from the floor, providing 18 assists on 26 baskets. With Tuesday night's win, Wittenberg now holds a 48-21 overall record in NCAC Tournament games, including 26-4 in quarterfinal contests.
Game Breakdown
Pumroy would open the scoring a minute and a half into the action, hitting his first three of the game and giving Wittenberg their first lead. The two sides battled back and forth looking for the edge before Ali-Shakir hit his first three of the game with just over seven minutes in the first half, giving Wittenberg a 24-14 lead over the Battling Bishops. Wittenberg extended their lead out to 31-18 with just under three and a half minutes left before the break, coming off another Pumroy three-pointer. Back-to-back lay-ups from Landon Martin secured the Tiger lead at the break at 37-22. Wittenberg fought off an Ohio Wesleyan second-half attack, holding onto five and then three-point lead with just under 15 minutes in the game. A made layup by Seipel helped turn the tides in the Tiger's favor, followed by back-to-back three-pointers from Pumroy and Ali-Shakir, taking the Tiger advantage back out to 53-45. Ohio Wesleyan would not go away, cutting the Tiger lead down to three at 53-50 with just over seven minutes to go in the game. Jake Bertemes converted on a pair of free-throws followed by back-to-back threes from Ali-Shakir and Johnson, giving Wittenberg their first double-digit lead of the second half at 61-50.
From The Bench
UP NEXT
Wittenberg will return to action on Friday, Feb. 28, hosting Oberlin College from Pam Evans Smith Arena in the NCAC Semifinal game at 5:30 PM.