Jake Mays

WOOSTER, Ohio – A nightmarish performance from the free throw line (10-for-30) by No. 8 ranked College of Wooster helped allow Hiram College to stay close and the visiting Terriers had three looks at a game-tying 3-pointer during the final 20.2 seconds but the Fighting Scots survived to extend their winning streak to 10, taking the North Coast Athletic Conference tilt 68-63 Saturday night at Timken Gym.

With the win and Ohio Wesleyan University's loss earlier in the day, Wooster (17-2, 10-0 NCAC) now owns a three-game lead in the conference standings with six to play.

The Scots missed their 19th and 20th free throws of the game with 29.2 seconds remaining to give Hiram (10-9, 4-6 NCAC), which called a timeout nine seconds later, a chance to tie it. The Terriers attempted three 3-pointers, thanks to Steve Zivoder twice swatting offensive rebounds out to one of their top shooters, Aaron Stefanov.

Finally, Wooster's Doug Thorpe collected a defensive board and was fouled at the 3.7 mark, and the junior guard netted both free throws to seal the outcome.

During the first half, the Scots did not shoot the ball very well from the field either, most notably a 1-for-14 line on 3-pointers. Wooster's defense was up to the task, though, as it never allowed Hiram to get ahead by more than two points, and the teams were deadlocked at halftime, 26-26.

After two scoreless minutes to start the second, the Scots got on track offensively with a 10-0 run, starting with a hustle play that saw Evan Pannell track down an offensive rebound, then drive into the lane for a basket. Xavier Brown followed with a couple of mid-range jumpers, sandwich around a Jake Mays' bucket inside, and Jalen Goodwin capped the run on a jump shot from the right wing for a 36-28 lead.

Wooster led by two or more possessions up until :33 were left. The Scots' biggest advantage was 65-55 with 1:22 to play, however, Stefanov answered with a quick 3-pointer and added a couple of free throws with just under a minute to play to make it a five-point deficit.

Next, Thorpe split a pair from the charity stripe and Stefanov went back to the line where he made the first, missed the second, only to be rebounded by teammate Justin Wisniewski, who was fouled. Wisniewski dropped in both to bring the Terriers within three points (66-63) at the :33 mark.

The key to Wooster's win was its field-goal shooting during the second half (16-for-25; .640) that included nailing 3-of-4 3-pointers, and its overall defense as the Scots helped limit Hiram to 33.8 percent for the game (22-for-65).

In addition to the free throw shooting, Wooster uncharacteristically gave up 15 offensive rebounds in losing the overall battle on the glass 45-41.

Individually, Mays paced the Scots in scoring (13) and rebounding (7) and he also blocked two shots, while joining him in double figures were Brown, Kenny DeBoer, and Thorpe with 10 points apiece. Noteworthy, DeBoer extended his consecutive field goals made streak to 16 before it ended during the first half.

Alan Sheppard led all scorers with 22 points, while Stefanov finished with 16 plus four assists.

Wooster continues its homestand Wednesday when it welcomes Denison University (7-12, 5-5 NCAC) at 7:30 p.m.