Jake Mays

The College of Wooster, ranked No. 16 in D3hoops.com's first regular season top-25 poll, constructed a 13-point lead in the second half, then held off a late rally by Ohio Northern University, ultimately prevailing by a 67-56 final score in non-conference action Wednesday night at Ada, Ohio.

The match-up was tied 26-26 at halftime and again at 28 early in the second when Wooster (4-1) proceeded to outscore its hosts 16-3 for a 44-31 cushion. That stretch, which lasted about five minutes, began with an old-fashioned three-point play by Jake Mays and was capped on a Doug Thorpe 3-pointer.

The Fighting Scots continued to lead by at least three possessions until Ohio Northern (4-2) went on a quick 9-1 run, pulling within 59-54 with just over a minute remaining.

Wooster then made 8-of-10 free throws to secure its third-straight road win.

Statistically, the Scots were held to just 18 made field goals as part of a 43.9 shooting percentage, but spent quite a bit of time at the free throw line, sinking 30-of-37 there (.811), and they also owned a significant 43-28 advantage in the rebounding department. Defensively, Wooster helped limit the Polar Bears to a .328 rate from the floor (20-for-61).

Mays continued his strong play of late, registering team highs in points (17), rebounds (8), and blocks (3). Xavier Brown endured a cold night from the field (2-for-13), but finished with 15 points after piling up a series of late free throws, while Josh Claytor chipped in an even dozen and Thorpe 10.

Ohio Northern's Branden Rushton led all scorers with 22 points.

The Scots' three-game winning streak and Wittenberg University's 4-0 start to the season sets up another exciting match-up between the two archrivals, as they'll play the first of two regular season meetings this Saturday night, Dec. 1, in Springfield, Ohio. While it's early in the year, the contest will likely have conference championship implications, as one of the two has won or shared the NCAC championship every season since 1989-90.