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| Nathan Balch |
WOOSTER, Ohio – After missing out on a chance to win at the end of regulation, The College of Wooster took control early in overtime, outscoring Albion College 11-2 at the outset of the extra session en route to a 74-66 victory in a men's basketball regional match-up Saturday night at Timken Gymnasium.
Tied 58-58, Nathan Balch (Westerville, Ohio / Olentangy) set the tone for Wooster (5-3) as he scored the first five points of overtime, including a 3-pointer on the initial possession. Albion (3-4) answered a Balch lay-up to pull within 63-60 around the 3:00 mark.
On the ensuing possession, the Fighting Scots got a nice break when Justin Hallowell's (Worthington, Ohio / Thomas Worthington) long 3-pointer at the top of the key banked in for a six-point advantage.
The teams would go scoreless until, with a little over a minute to go, Balch blocked a Britons' 3-pointer, collected the loose ball, and started a fast break that ended with Marty Bidwell (Middletown, Ohio / Bishop Fenwick) feeding Bryan Wickliffe (Columbus, Ohio / St. Charles Prep) for a lay-up. That made it a 68-60 game and Wooster sealed it via 6-of-9 free throw shooting over the final minute.
In the first half, Albion constructed a double-digit lead of 29-18 as its defense held the Scots scoreless for six full minutes. Wooster closed strong, though, going on a 16-5 run, highlighted by 3-pointers from Hallowell and Mike Evans (Pickerington, Ohio / Pickerington North) 20 seconds apart, to take a 34-32 lead at the break.
The Scots carried that momentum over into the second, using an early 13-4 burst to turn a 40-36 lead into a seemingly comfortable 15-point margin (53-38). Wooster was ahead by 58-47 with 7:04 remaining, however, it would not score the rest of regulation.
The Britons rallied for 11 unanswered points, capped by a Robbie Clark 3-pointer with 2:44 on the clock. Neither team would find the basket again until overtime. The Scots had just two shots during the final 2:44, as Albion used three offensive rebounds to control the ball from the 2:08 mark until Hallowell came up with a defensive rebound with about :35 to play.
Wooster got a good look at the buzzer, but a Wickliffe shot in the lane was off target.
Overall, it was a defensive battle, as both teams shot under 40 percent from the field. The Scots wound up at 39.7 percent (27-for-68), shooting better on 3-pointers (.458; 11-for-24) than inside the arc (.364; 16-for-44), compared to the Britons' 35.1 percent (27-for-77).
The difference was Wooster's rebounding, as it owned a 57-42 advantage in that category, led by Wickliffe's career-high 15. He finished one point shy of a double-double for the second game in a row.
Hallowell was the top scorer with 17 points, including 5-of-7 3-point shooting. Blach had seven points in overtime, giving him 15 for the game, while Ian Franks (Greenwich, Ohio / South Central) chipped in with 11. Also of note, Bidwell contributed a game-high five assists and two steals to the winning effort.
For Albion, 6-8 Drew Yancey and 6-7 Dave Elliott scored 14 and 10 points, respectively, and J.C. Cruse had a solid all-around game of 11 points, six rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots, and four steals.
Next, the Scots are traveling to Hawaii, where they'll play NCAA Div. II University of Hawaii at Hilo (3-1) on Friday at 9 p.m. HAST.