Lights-Out Shooting Night by Lewis & Clark Trips Up Scots in West Coast Trip Finale

Senior Dan Fanelly scored a season-high 32 points, but in the end, The College of Wooster men's basketball team couldn't overcome a red-hot shooting night by Lewis and Clark College as the Pioneers topped the Fighting Scots 87-82 at the Pamplin Sports Center in Portland, Ore.

Wooster (5-5) took control early with a 10-0 run to open a 10-2 lead with 16:32 left in the first half, as the Scots connected on five of their first six shots of the game. Then, Fanelly countered a Pioneer 3-pointer and field goal with a bucket and trifecta of his own to extend the lead back to eight at 15-7 with just over 15 minutes left in the half.

Wooster cooled off from there as the Scots didn't make another field goal until Fanelly snuck inside for a lay-in at the 8:22 mark to halt a 17-point run by Lewis & Clark (4-7), who led by nine at 24-15 prior to Fanelly's bucket.

Next, a 6-2 clip by the hosts pushed the lead out to a game-high 11 points (30-19) before Wooster started clicking again on offense. Freshman Danyon Hempy sparked a 9-0 run, finishing a nice backdoor cut feed from Fanelly. Fanelly took control of the contest at the end of the run with five straight points, pulling Wooster within one at 32-31.

Lewis & Clark's Ryan Stewart responded with a 3-pointer that was quickly answered by Hempy to trim it back down to a one-point margin. The Scots eventually tied the game at 38 and 40 on two final-minute first-half layups by junior Spencer Williams.

Similar to the opening stanza, Wooster jumped out of the gates quickly in the second half, as the Scots scored the first six points of the period to take a 46-40 lead after a Fanelly layup with 18:11 remaining.

Later, sophomore Reece Dupler halted a 6-0 run with a jumper to give the Scots their final lead of the night at 50-49 with 13:47 remaining, but the Pioneers' Kyle Owens responded right back with a 3-pointer seven ticks later to give Lewis & Clark the lead for the duration.

Sophomore Mitch Balser pulled Wooster within one (57-56) at the midway point of the period on a 3-pointer. Just as it had all contest, Lewis & Clark's stellar outside shooting answered right back, with two of the Pioneers' dozen 3-pointers  quickly extending the advantage back out to seven with 9:05 left in the contest.

Wooster, who trailed by as many as 11 in the second half, trimmed its deficit down to two with :30 remaining as Fanelly connected on a reverse layup to make it 84-82 right after the Scots forced a five-second call defensively.

Notable, Fanelly's 32 points marked the second-most of his career, and the senior finished 13-for-21 from the floor, while securing five rebounds and distributing four assists.

In all, eight student-athletes finished the game in double figures in scoring, including four from the Scots as Dupler (13), Williams (12), and Hempy (10) joined Fanelly to comprise Wooster's quartet of double-figure scorers.

Lewis & Clark, who shot 56 percent from the game - including 12-for-21 from beyond the arc - was led by Cannen Roberson's 21 points, while Andrew Vickers dished out a game-high eight assists.

Next, Wooster plays host to Hobart College at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 29 in the nightcap of the first day of the 54th annual E.M. "Mose" Hole/Wooster Kiwanis Classic.