Ian Franks of Wooster drives past Ohio Wesleyan's Rob Gardiner during Saturday's second-half action.

WOOSTER, Ohio – In a key early-season North Coast Athletic Conference tilt, The College of Wooster used a couple of first-half bursts to build a substantial lead on Ohio Wesleyan University and the host Fighting Scots went on to an 82-65 men's basketball victory Saturday night at Timken Gymnasium.

Neither squad scored until nearly three minutes into the game, but then after trading field goals, Wooster (4-3, 2-0 NCAC) strung together 10 unanswered points for a 12-2 lead. Ohio Wesleyan (3-3, 0-1 NCAC) would later pull within 17-13 at the 8:41 mark of the opening half.

Following a timeout, the Scots would outscore the Battling Bishops 24-7 the rest of the stanza, making it a 21-point halftime cushion of 41-20. Wooster's defense was the difference in the first half, as it helped force 11 turnovers and limited Ohio Wesleyan to 7-for-22 field goal shooting (.318).

During the second half, the Scots' lead hovered between 16 and 27 points until a late rally by the Bishops trimmed a 77-51 margin down to 77-62 with 1:34 remaining. Wooster eventually secured a 17-point win.

The Scots utilized a balanced scoring attack with three hitting double figures, led by Ian Franks' (Greenwich, Ohio / South Central) 18 points, 17 of which came during the second half. He also grabbed eight rebounds and passed out a team-high three assists, while Nathan Balch (Westerville, Ohio / Olentangy) and Marty Bidwell (Middletown, Ohio / Bishop Fenwick) scored 12 and 10 points, respectively. Ten of Balch's came in the first half and Bidwell made three steals.

Additionally, Bryan Wickliffe (Columbus, Ohio / St. Charles Prep) may have played his best game of the season, falling just one point shy of a double-double with a game-high 10 rebounds, despite being in foul trouble.

One last note on the Wooster side, junior Dustin Geitgey (West Salem, Ohio / Northwestern) missed the first free throw of his career late in the game, ending a streak of 28 in a row.

For Ohio Wesleyan, Kyle Holliday scored 15 points, a couple below his average, and the Bidwell-led Scot defense harassed him into six turnovers – the same total he had for the season entering the game. Kyle Miller contributed 13 points, but it took him 14 field goal attempts to get there.

Overall, Wooster was just under 50 percent from the floor (.466; 27-for-58), which includes an off night from 3-point range (.263; 5-for-19), while the Bishops finished up at 37.5 percent (21-for-56), including 9-for-25 behind the 3-point line (.360). The Scots also made more free throws (23) than Ohio Wesleyan attempted (22) and owned a 46-33 rebounding advantage.

Wooster will be off for final exams this coming week and then resume action next Saturday with a home game against regional foe Albion College (3-3) at 7:30 p.m.