Wooster Aims to Keep NCAC Championship Hopes Alive Saturday Night

Wooster-Wittenberg Rivalry Detailed Timeline

While five of the North Coast Athletic Conference's men's basketball teams have received votes in the D3hoops.com top-25 poll at one time or another this season and three others have already won 10-plus games, the conference championship once again is coming down to either No. 13 ranked College of Wooster (19-3, 10-3 NCAC) or No. 22 Wittenberg University (17-5, 11-2 NCAC).

The two archrivals have combined to win or share every NCAC championship since 1989-90 (Allegheny College was the only team to break in via a co-championship during 1992-93), and they meet for the second time this season with plenty on the line Saturday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m., at Wittenberg's 3,044-seat Pam Evans Smith Arena in Springfield, Ohio. The Fighting Scots are looking to move into a tie for first-place in the NCAC standings entering next week's final two games of the regular season, while the Tigers would clinch at least a share of the NCAC championship and home-court advantage for the NCAC Tournament with a win.

When the squads met in Wooster, Ohio, earlier this season (Dec. 7), Wittenberg prevailed 56-55 on a buzzer-beater as Zack Leahy was in the right place at the right time to catch an offensive rebound off an air ball and lay it in as the horn sounded. The game played out in typical fashion between these fierce opponents, featuring 12 lead changes, six ties, and neither team being ahead by more than six points.

On the Air: If you can't make it to Pam Evans Smith Arena, live video of Saturday's game will be available at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/wit.portal#.

Additionally, every Wooster men's basketball game can be heard live in the Wooster area on WQKT 104.5 FM or by following links on the radio station's website at http://wqkt.com/. Mike Breckenridge serves as the "Voice of the Fighting Scots."

Witt-Woo Rivalry Notes: Over the first 101 meetings on the hardwood, Wittenberg holds a 53-48 edge in the all-time series, and the final outcome has been five points or less during 42 of those games (41.6 percent), including nine of the last 17 and 22 of the last 46.

Since the Tigers joined the NCAC in 1989-90, the Wittenberg-Wooster rivalry has developed into quite possibly the best in NCAA Div. III basketball, and there's no signs of it slowing down. While combining to win/share every NCAC championship, the two have played 54 times with the Tigers slightly ahead at 28-26. Neither has won more than four in a row against the other during that stretch and the average margin of victory has been just 7.8 points. Wittenberg or Wooster has won the NCAC Tournament all but three times the last 22 seasons, and they've played each other in the championship game 11 times (they also met in the 1973 and 1979 Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament finals).

Also of interest, the two programs have produced more victories than any other in Div. III history, with Wittenberg at No. 1 (1,646) and Wooster No. 2 (1,570). They have each advanced to the national championship game of the NCAA Div. III Championships recently, the Scots in 2011 and the Tigers in 2006.

Scots' In-Season Update: After graduating three of its top-four players from a group that extended Wooster's streak of NCAC championships to seven and advanced all the way to the national championship game of the 2011 NCAA Div. III Championships, expectations were slightly lower for the 2011-12 Scots, but here they are at 19-3 overall and with a No. 13 national ranking.

Among Wooster's keys to success has been defense and rebounding as usual. The Scots rate among the top-20 in Div. III in defensive field-goal percentage (.389) and rebounding margin (+8.0 per game) in the most recent statistics.

Offensively, the Scots traditionally balanced attack has six players averaging 6.0 or more points, including three in double figures. Xavier Brown (Bowling Green, Ohio / Bowling Green) has been a welcome addition, as the freshman guard leads the way at 13.0 points per night. The last 14 games Brown's average has been 10.4 points, which coincides with the rise of junior center Josh Claytor (Oxford, Ohio / Talawanda), who scored at a rate of 15.3 points during a 12-game stretch (Dec. 10-Jan. 25) to bump his season average to 11.5 points on a very efficient .669 field-goal percentage.

Four-year starter Justin Hallowell (Columbus, Ohio / Thomas Worthington) has been a steady force throughout, averaging 11.9 points in a variety of ways. The 6-7 forward has made 46 two-point field goals, 44 3-pointers, and 38 free throws, while fellow senior Matt Fegan (Strongsville, Ohio / Strongsville) has connected on 43 3-pointers as part of a 7.7 scoring average. He also distributes a team-leading 2.5 assists per game. The third starter is also a senior, Justin Warnes (Toledo, Ohio / Bowsher), who thrives in his role as a defensive stopper while adding 5.8 points.

Wooster's second five, which often sub in all together, consists of freshman guard Jalen Goodwin (Hamilton, Ohio / Lakota East), junior center Jake Mays (Tallmadge, Ohio / Tallmadge), freshman guard Evan Pannell (Akron, Ohio / Archbishop Hoban), sophomore guard Ryan Snyder (Canton, Ohio / St. Thomas Aquinas), and sophomore guard Doug Thorpe (Columbus, Ohio / Eastmoor Academy). Mays and Thorpe are the top scorers of the group at 6.9 and 6.0 points, respectively.

This and That: Senior forward Justin Hallowell (Columbus, Ohio / Thomas Worthington) is three 3-pointers made from equaling the NCAC record for a career in that category, currently held by Jamie Harless of Kenyon College (276; 1991-95) ... Senior guard Matt Fegan (Strongsville, Ohio / Strongsville) has played every game of his career (117), helping the Scots to a 98-19 record (.838) ... Wooster continues to own the best winning percentage of any NCAA team of the 2000s (.853; 330-57).