No. 20 Wooster Survives Oberlin's Late Rally, Now 12-2 After 94-92 Win

WOOSTER, Ohio – The 20th-ranked College of Wooster men's basketball team erased a five-point halftime deficit, and then held off a late charge by Oberlin College to win 94-92 on Wednesday evening at Timken Gymnasium.

Wooster (12-2, 6-1 North Coast Athletic Conference) took the lead with just inside 10 minutes to go in the contest. Junior Dontae Williams knocked down a mid-range jumper to put the Scots up 71-69, and classmate Peyton Bennington upped the lead to four with a lay-in with 9:28 remaining.

The Scots appeared to be in control with 6:03 remaining. That's when senior Danyon Hempy logged his second steal of the night, drew a foul, and went on to complete the three-point play, which put the Scots up 84-72. Hempy's old-fashion three-point play capped a 9-0 stretch.

Wooster's biggest highlight of the night came with 5:05 remaining. Sophomore Brandon Styers chased down a loose ball along the sideline, knocked it back toward Oberlin's (8-6, 2-5 NCAC) basket. There, Williams tapped the ball off the Yeomen's Andre Campbell, and it went out of bounds.

Oberlin went on a 9-2 run over the final 1:18, during which Wolf Moser knocked down a pair of three-pointers. After pulling his team within 94-92, Moser stole the Scots' inbound pass, which gave Oberlin a chance to tie or win the game. A pass intended for Campbell was deflected out of bounds with 0.9 seconds remaining, and Oberlin's ensuing inbound pass was a little behind Campbell, which prevented him from attempting a game-tying shot at the buzzer.

Behind Hempy, Wooster jumped out to a 7-0 lead at the onset. The NCAC's leading scorer was locked in from range and hit a pair of triples in the first 91 seconds. On the second, Hempy went on to finish a rare four-point play at the charity stripe.

As the first half neared its midpoint, Styers hit a jumper in the paint that tied the game at 17, and sophomore Drew Bishop stepped up in a big way. Bishop hit three field goals, including a pair of three-pointers, over a 2:17 span, and the second triple put the Scots up 27-24.

Oberlin tied the game three times before taking over for the last five minutes of the half. Joshua Friedkin was fouled on a three-pointer, and his three free throws upped the Yeomen's lead to 45-38. Hempy's old-fashion three-point play pulled Wooster within 48-43 at the half.

Five Scots finished in double figures in the scoring column, including Hempy, whose 28 points were the game high. Hempy went 10-of-16 from the floor and had all three of the Scots' blocked shots. Williams followed with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting, while Bennington upped his season-high in scoring to 14.

Williams' seven rebounds marked the game-high, while junior Keonn Scott and Styers had three assists each.

Wooster upped its season-high in shooting for the second time in the last three games. The Scots finished the night 36-of-62 (58.1 percent) from the floor and had a five-rebound edge on the Yeomen.

Christian Fioretti led Oberlin with 21 points, nine assists, and five rebounds.

Oberlin shot 59.6 percent (34-of-57) for the game, was 12-of-25 from three-point range, and made 12-of-15 free throws.

Next up is the 120th game in one of small college basketball's greatest rivalries. Second-ranked Wittenberg University (14-0, 7-0 NCAC) makes the trip to Timken Gymnasium for Saturday's 4 p.m. game. Wooster fans are encouraged to wear white attire in an effort to "white out" the Tigers. Additionally, Wooster's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is sponsoring a kid's day. Elementary students (kindergarten through fourth grade) and their families are admitted free of charge, and there will be kid-friendly activities for both the women's and men's games.