Nathan Balch

WOOSTER, Ohio – The No. 1 ranked (D3hoops.com) College of Wooster men's basketball program is now off to the best start in its tradition-rich history, having improved to 15-0 with a wire-to-wire 82-55 victory over Oberlin College during North Coast Athletic Conference action Wednesday night at Timken Gymnasium.

Wooster, which began the 2004-05 season on a 14-game winning streak for its previous best start, jumped out to an 11-0 cushion before two minutes had even passed during Wednesday's action and never looked back. From that point, the Fighting Scots were never ahead by less than eight, as their lead quickly swelled to 20 points at 26-6 right before the midway point of the first half.

Up 46-22 at the halftime break, Wooster continued to maintain at least a 20-point advantage throughout the entire second stanza while liberally substituting.

The Scots held a significant statistical edge in almost every category. They shot 56.0 percent from the field (28-for-50), fueled by a .643 rate from the opening half (18-for-28), while Oberlin (1-14, 0-6 NCAC) finished at 40.8 percent (20-for-49). Wooster outrebounded its visitors 32-23 and came up with 13 steals off 18 turnovers.

Nathan Balch paced the Scots' attack with 23 points, marking his third 20-point effort of the season but first since the opening week. He made 9-of-12 shots from the floor, including 5-of-7 3-pointers.

Ian Franks was next in the scoring department with 11 points, while Matt Fegan tallied up five assists, compared to just one turnover. Also of note, Josh Claytor and Jake Mays shared the rebounding honors with five apiece.

One of the bright spots for the Yeomen was the play of Josh Merritt, who posted a stat line of 13 points, four assists, and two steals.

Next, the Scots, who are tied for first in the conference standings with rival Wittenberg University at 6-0, travel to Denison University (5-10, 2-5 NCAC) for a 3 p.m. tip-off.