17th-Ranked Scots Fall in Heartbreaking Fashion at Wabash, 68-67

CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. – For the second time in as many seasons, Wabash College's Kellen Schreiber emerged as the hero for the Little Giants, as his jumper from the middle of the paint with 5.2 seconds left held as the game-winner in Saturday's 68-67 upset over the 17th-ranked College of Wooster at Chadwick Court.

Moments earlier, Wooster (14-5, 8-4 North Coast Athletic Conference) senior Danyon Hempy hit a three-pointer in traffic with the shot clock winding down, as the Fighting Scots took their first lead of the game at 67-66 with 13.9 seconds left. After Schreiber's go-ahead bucket, Wooster looked to Hempy to beat the Wabash (12-7, 8-4 NCAC) defense down the floor. However, the officiating crew whistled the senior for stepping on the sideline as he was heavily contested while passing in front of Wooster's bench.

Wabash's Tyler Watson missed two free throws with a second remaining, but Wooster couldn't get a shot off after attempting about a three-quarters-of-a-court inbound pass.

Hempy's three-pointer with 13.9 seconds remaining marked the final points of Wooster's late 8-0 run. Junior Keonn Scott started the final 90 ticks off with a three-pointer that pulled Wooster within 66-62 with 1:27 to go. Next, Scott picked Wabash standout Jack Davidson's pocket on the far sideline, and was on his way to a potential fast-break layup. Schreiber chased Scott down, and forced the Scots' junior to get the job done at the charity stripe, where the sociology major trimmed the Little Giants' lead to 66-64 with 69 seconds left. After a missed Davidson three-pointer, Harrison Hallstrom initially came down with the rebound before a host of Scots tied him up, resulting in Hempy getting credited with a steal.

While Davidson was off the mark near the end of the game, he was spot on at the game's onset, in particular from well beyond the three-point line. The Little Giants' leading scorer rained down a trio of triples as part of Wabash's 5-of-10 start from beyond the arc. Teammate Justin Hensely hit Wabash's fifth and sixth three-ball of the afternoon, with the second upping the Little Giants' lead to 25-10 at the 9:27 mark of the first half.

Sophomores Khaylen Mahdi and Hamilton Johnson book-ended Wooster's 9-2 first-half stretch with three-pointers, with Johnson's trimming Wabash's lead to 34-27 at the 4:44 mark. Hempy's jumper with 1:22 to go before halftime pulled Wooster within seven again, this time at 37-30.

In the second half, Wooster switched out of its traditional man-to-man defense, and the Scots' zone was fairly effective in limiting the Little Giants' efficiency. Wabash went just 7-of-24 from the floor, which included a 3-of-12 mark from three-point range over the final 20 minutes. Davidson, who scored a game-high 12 points in the opening half, had just three in the second stanza.

Hempy's 27 points marked the game high. The senior was 11-of-21 shooting. He tied his career-high with nine rebounds and dished out four assists. Scott finished with 10 points, and he was the other Scot in double figures in the scoring column.

Wooster shot 40.7 percent (24-of-59) for the game, while the Scots tied their season-low with nine turnovers.

Davidson, Schreiber, and Watson scored 15 points apiece for Wabash. Hallstrom's nine rebounds marked the co-game-high, while Ahmoni Jones was right behind with eight.

Wabash shot 36.2 percent (21-of-58) for the game, and the Little Giants' 15-of-17 ledger at the charity stripe was one of the major impact points, as the Scots were just 10-of-18 at the line.

Looking back, Schreiber scored the go-ahead bucket during last season's meeting at Chadwick Court. His game-winning layup came with 1.4 seconds left in the Little Giants' 62-60 win.

Next, Wooster hosts Kenyon College (6-13, 3-9 NCAC) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, February 5.