Kipfer Leads Wooster Past Hiram 92-79 and Into NCAC Championship Game

DELAWARE, Ohio – The College of Wooster, which received 17 points and a career-high 18 rebounds from senior Josh Kipfer, held off a series of runs by Hiram College during the second half and eventually topped the Terriers 92-79 in a North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament semifinal match-up Friday on the campus of Ohio Wesleyan University.

With the win, second-seeded Wooster (21-6) continues an amazing run as it advances to the championship game of the NCAC Tournament for the eighth season in a row and the 19th time over the last 20 years.

The Fighting Scots closed the first half with 11 unanswered points, including six from Spencer Williams, to break a 34-34 tie and construct their largest lead of the game to that point at 45-34.

Wooster scored on the opening possession of the second, then had to fend off Hiram (19-8). The No. 3 seed's most significant stretch saw it quickly trim a 10-point deficit (53-43) down to 55-53, thanks in part to back-to-back J.J. Woodson 3-pointers.

Out of a timeout, the Scots scored on their next two possessions to maintain the lead, but the margin remained within seven points until the midway point of the half.

A 13-1 run featured a Kipfer fast-break dunk and two more transition baskets by Milt Davis, the latter resulting in a 74-59 advantage with about eight minutes to play.

The Terriers pulled right back within striking distance, though, via eight-straight points (74-67).

The back-and-forth affair continued when Wooster answered with the next five points, followed by Hiram cutting it to seven at 81-74 as the clock ticked under four minutes.

Off of a missed 3-pointer, Williams scored a fast-break lay-up, and a possession later, nailed a clutch 3-pointer from the left wing to make it 86-75.

The Scots' Reece Dupler accounted for the next four points, hitting a runner in the lane and two free throws, sandwiched around back-to-back defensive stops, to just about seal the outcome, 90-75 at the 1:57 mark.

Among the statistical keys were Wooster outrebounding the Terriers 49-35 and making 27-of-33 free throws (.818), compared to 16-of-27 (.593).

Kipfer got off to a strong start, tallying five points and seven rebounds within the opening 5:10, and continued to pile up the numbers from there. The 18 rebounds equaled a Wooster best during an NCAC Tournament game, last achieved by Mike Trimmer against Allegheny College in the 1991 finals.

Williams tossed in an even 20 points, Dupler matched Kipfer's scoring output with 17, and Mitch Balser tallied 13 points plus four assists.

For Hiram, Woodson closed his career with a 27-point outing and Kelvin Jones notched a double-double of16 points and 10 rebounds.

Saturday's championship game will tip-off at 5 p.m., as the Scots await the winner of fourth-seeded Denison University and top-seeded Ohio Wesleyan.