Wooster’s Cold 3-Point Shooting the Difference in 72-63 Loss to Skidmore

WOOSTER, Ohio – A slow start and cold outside shooting throughout – 2-for-20 on 3-point attempts – doomed The College of Wooster on Saturday afternoon, as Skidmore College handed the 20th-ranked Fighting Scots a 72-63 setback, a rare loss during their annual Al Van Wie/Wooster Rotary Classic at Timken Gymnasium.

Wooster (1-1), after suffering its second loss in the event since 2009, is now 36-7 all-time (.837) at the Al Van Wie/Rotary Classic.

It was an intense and physical early season match-up between two programs that advanced to the second round of the 2015 NCAA Div. III Championships field.

Skidmore (2-1) scored the game's opening six points, and shortly after, helped force the Scots' first-team all-North Coast Athletic Conference post player into his second foul in three minutes. Later, the Thoroughbreds pulled out to an 18-7 lead.

Wooster narrowed the deficit to 29-24 on a pair of Spencer Williams free throws at the 4:24 mark of the opening half, only to see the visitors respond with an Erik Sanders 3-pointer, followed by a steal and Nick Volpe layup as they regained a double-digit cushion (34-24). It was 34-26 at halftime.

The second half started similarly to the first, with Skidmore accounting for the first five points and expanding its advantage to 39-26.

The Scots answered with their best stretch of the day, scoring eight unanswered points, all in the paint, including back-to-back drives by Williams.

Again, the Thoroughbreds halted the run with a 3-pointer, this time delivered by Royce Paris after an offensive rebound, and they steadily extended their lead back to double figures.

Wooster continued to battle, as it narrowed the margin to 50-44 with 8:01 to play, but another 3-pointer by Edvinas Rupkus gave Skidmore a three-possession lead. The Thoroughbreds stayed ahead by a relatively comfortable margin the rest of the way.

The final statistics were very similar – 37.7 percent field-goal shooting for the Scots (23-for-61) to 35.7 percent for Skidmore (20-for-56), 41 rebounds for each team, and an identical 13 turnovers. The biggest difference was Wooster's 3-point rate, compared to the Thoroughbreds' eight 3-pointers (out of 27 attempts). Also of note, the visitors were an impressive 24-of-28 from the free throw line (.857).

Eric Bulic paced four Scots in double figures with 13 points, and Josh Kipfer was a perfect 4-of-4 on both field goals and free throws for a 12-point game. They both shared team honors in rebounding with seven apiece, while Williams chipped in 11 points and Mitch Balser 10, which included the team's only two 3-point makes (2-for-4).

Aldin Medunjanin and Sanders stood out for Skidmore, tossing in 18 and 17 points, respectively. Medunjanin also passed out five assists, and Volpe corralled a game-high 10 rebounds.

Next, Wooster will hit the road for the first time this season, as it plays at Cabrini College on Tuesday night.