No. 19 Scots Aiming to Make Run at NCAC Tournament Championship

After winning the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament the last three years and four of the last seven, all as the No. 1 seed, The College of Wooster will have to take a different route this season as it is the No. 2 seed. Wooster, which advanced all the way to the national championship game of the 2011 NCAA Div. III Men's Basketball Championship during last year's postseason, hopes Tuesday, Feb. 21, marks the beginning of another long run when seventh-seeded DePauw University (13-12) visits for the teams' NCAC Tournament quarterfinal encounter. DePauw may quite well be the best No. 7 seed in the conference tournament's 28-year history, as its 13 total victories are the most for a No. 7. The two teams split their regular season series, with the Tigers prevailing 75-66 on their home floor in Greencastle, Ind., Jan. 14, and the Fighting Scots taking a 74-67 decision at Timken Gymnasium just this past Saturday.

If Wooster can win the rubber match-up, then it will play the winner of third-seeded Ohio Wesleyan University (19-6) and No. 6 seed Hiram College (14-11) at the site of the highest remaining seed. Wittenberg University (20-5) is the top overall seed and would host the semifinals and championship game on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24-25, if it can get past eighth-seeded Kenyon College (11-14) on Tuesday. The semifinals are slated for 6 and 8 p.m. tip-offs, and the championship at 7 p.m., with the NCAC Tournament winner gaining an automatic berth into the NCAA Div. III Championships, which starts next week.

On the Air: If you can't make it to Timken Gym, the audio and video from local cable provider Clear Picture, Inc., will be broadcast live over the Web at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/wooster-mens-basketball.

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."

Ticket Info: There will be no advance ticket sales. As determined by the conference office, ticket prices for the quarterfinals are $7 for adults and $5 for children (18 and under), NCAC guest pass holders, and students without an NCAC institution ID. Students with an NCAC institution ID gain free admittance. 

NCAC Tourney Notes: Wooster has had a great deal of success in the NCAC Tournament, having captured 13 of the 27 previous titles, seven more than any other school in the conference. The Scots, champions in 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2011 are a league-best 54-14 all-time (.794) in NCAC tourney play.

Overall, Wooster has 19 NCAC Tournament championship game appearances to its credit, highlighted by a streak of 11 in a row (1997-2007). Last season, the Scots closed with a 15-1 run to avoid being upset by Allegheny College during a 62-57 quarterfinal win, then held off Ohio Wesleyan 70-62 in the semis, and beat Wittenberg 82-68 in the finals. Since the conference went to its current non-division format (1991-92), Wooster has been the No. 2 seed five times and won the NCAC Tournament thrice in that role (1992, 2001, 2004), however, the last time the Scots lost in the quarterfinals, they were also in the role of a No. 2 seed (1996).

Regular Season Recap: 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 they reloaded, finishing the regular season at 21-4 overall and No. 19 in the D3hoops.com top-25 poll.

Of Wooster's four losses, two were heartbreakers to archrival Wittenberg University, one on an offensive put-back as the buzzer sounded for a 56-55 setback Dec. 7 and the other went to overtime before the Tigers prevailed 68-62 on Feb. 11. The other two were both road losses, occurring in Indiana, 72-58 to then-No. 25 ranked Wabash College Dec. 10, and 75-66 at DePauw University Jan. 14.

Other than that it has been all victories for Wooster, as it extended its NCAA Div. III-leading active streak to 16 consecutive 20-win seasons. Among the highlights were a 20-point comeback to defeat St. Mary's College of Maryland 63-61 in a game played at San Juan, P.R., Dec. 19, and a pair of four-point decisions over Ohio Wesleyan University, 72-68 on Jan. 21 and 54-50 on Feb. 8. Both Ohio Wesleyan and St. Mary's (Md.) are currently 19-6.

The Scots' key to success, as usual, has been defense. They rate among the top-10 in defensive field-goal percentage (.384) and defensive 3-point percentage (.284) in the most recent NCAA Div. III national statistics. Within the conference, Wooster leads the way in six major categories – scoring offense (75.8 ppg), field-goal percentage (.481), defensive field-goal percentage, 3-point percentage (.400), defensive 3-point percentage, and rebounding margin (+6.6 per game).

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 13.4 points per night. Junior center Josh Claytor (Oxford, Ohio / Talawanda) scored at a rate of 15.3 points during a 12-game stretch (Dec. 10-Jan. 25) to bump his season average to 11.1 points on a league-leading .642 field-goal percentage.

Four-year starter Justin Hallowell (Columbus, Ohio / Thomas Worthington) has been a steady force throughout, averaging 13.0 points in a variety of ways. The 6-7 forward has made 58 3-point field goals, 53 two-point field goals, and 44 free throws, while fellow senior Matt Fegan (Strongsville, Ohio / Strongsville) has connected on 46 3-pointers as part of a 7.2 scoring average. He also distributes a team-leading 2.7 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 5.4 points.

Wooster's reserves currently 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), and sophomore guard Doug Thorpe (Columbus, Ohio / Eastmoor Academy). Mays and Thorpe are the top scorers of that group at 6.6 and 6.2 points, respectively.

This and That: Senior forward Justin Hallowell (Columbus, Ohio / Thomas Worthington) recently became the NCAC's career leader in 3-pointers made. He now has 287 for his career as well as 1,384 points, which puts him 13th in team history … Senior guard Matt Fegan (Strongsville, Ohio / Strongsville) has played every game of his career (120), helping the Scots to a 100-20 record (.833) … Wooster continues to own the highest winning percentage of any NCAA team of the 2000s (.851; 332-58).