Scott Purcell

After a cold shooting first half, Dan Fanelly sparked a 9-2 run for No. 2 ranked College of Wooster to start the second and the Fighting Scots went on to a 54-41 North Coast Athletic Conference win over Wabash College on Saturday afternoon at Crawfordsville, Ind.

Wooster (7-0, 4-0 NCAC) made just 6-of-22 field goals (.273) during the opening 20 minutes, but still managed to take a 21-20 halftime advantage when Doug Thorpe converted three free throws right before the break. That marked the Scots first lead of the game.

Fanelly scored all nine points of that 9-2 run at the beginning of the second half, twice producing a steal and transitioning it into a lay-up on the other end, as Wooster went ahead 30-22.

Wabash (0-8, 0-3 NCAC) cut the margin to six at 32-26, then Scott Purcell connected on the second of his three 3-pointers for a nine-point cushion. The Little Giants never made it a two-possession game again, as the Scots led by eight or more the final 14 minutes of the defensive affair.

Wooster bumped its field-goal percentage to .367 (18-for-49) for the game and its defense helped limit Wabash to a .341 rate (15-for-44), but the most significant difference came at the free throw line, as the Scots dropped in 15-of-20 (.750), compared to the Little Giants' 6-of-18 (.333).

Fanelly finished with a game-high 15 points as well as five rebounds and five of the team's eight steals, while Purcell gave Wooster a lift with a career-high 12 points, keyed by 3-of-6 3-point shooting. Also notable, Xavier Brown contributed five assists to the victory.

Kyle Aiton knocked down three 3-pointers as part of a 13-point day for Wabash.

The Scots will now fly to Phoenix, Ariz., for a pair of games against NAIA Div. I programs, starting with Westmont College (7-2) on Monday at 5:30 p.m. MST (7:30 EST).