HIRAM, Ohio – One of The College of Wooster's men's basketball team's signature streaks is still going strong, as the Fighting Scots scored their 18th win for the 34th consecutive season with Wednesday night's 74-66 victory at Hiram College.
Wooster (18-4, 12-2 North Coast Athletic Conference), which has won at least 18 games in every full season since the 1988-89 campaign, now needs a win, or a loss by Wabash College (17-5, 10-3 NCAC), which lost at Denison University (12-9, 8-5 NCAC) 68-61 on Wednesday, to clinch at least a share of its league-leading 19th NCAC title.
Wooster's 22-5 run that spanned 8:21 of the second half was ultimately too tall an order for Hiram (11-12, 5-9 NCAC) to overcome. The Terriers were within 37-35, thanks to Brodgie Gordon's scoop shot that banked in with 19:15 remaining. Wooster sophomore Jamir Billings started the decisive stretch with a three-pointer in transition, then senior Najee Hardaway provided strong defense with a block on 6-6 Ivan Yang's layup. Junior Carter Warstler walked the tightrope on Hiram's next possession with a steal while tiptoeing the baseline, and the junior was at it again a possession later, emerging with a steal from a pile of players. Junior JJ Cline made it three straight steals for the Scots when he scooped up a loose ball, and classmate Nick Everett outhustled Hiram for a loose ball for a fourth straight steal when a Terrier dribbled the ball off his foot.
Billings followed the sequence of elite defense up with a pullup three-pointer, and that bucket extended Wooster's lead to 43-35 at the 15:59 mark. Everett rejected a Gordon floater with authority coming out of a timeout, and Billings was on the money again soon after with a step-back triple that had the lead back at six. Later, Cline finished through contact to score three the old-fashion way, and Everett was too powerful for Hiram's forwards with a second-chance bucket that grew the lead to 57-40 with 11:22 on the clock. Next, Billings lobbed a pass down low to Everett, who finished the 22-5 stretch with 11:03 remaining.
Wooster had to hold off Hiram late, as Kevin Beans Jr. had the Terriers within 69-65 with 1:29 remaining. Senior Turner Kurt did his part to keep it a two-possession game by deflecting a ball away from the grasp of Trent Jakacki with inside a minute remaining. Everett's hustle saved the ball from going out of bounds, then Billings made two free throws with :39.8 on the clock. The Scots' point guard continued to shine with a block on a deep Gordon three-pointer, which resulted in two more Wooster free throws once Hardaway secured the rebound.
Wooster's bench provided the lift the Scots needed in the first half. Junior Brennan South knocked down a trio of three-pointers, two of which were set up by Warstler assists on consecutive possessions. Fueled by South and Everett, 19 of Wooster's 35 first-half points came from the bench. Everett's putback had Wooster up six before the Scots settled for a 35-31 halftime lead.
Everett matched his career-high, set just a week ago, with 20 points, and he sports a 19.3 per-game scoring average over Wooster's last three contests. The junior added eight rebounds and four steals to his line, with four of the boards coming on the offensive end. Cline chipped in 12 points, while Billings and Hardaway scored 11 apiece. Billings added seven rebounds and two steals, and he was tied for the team lead in assists with three.
Wooster shot 39.3 percent (24-of-61), hit on 42.3 percent (11-of-26) of its three-pointers, but did struggle from the line, going just 15-of-24.
Gordon led all players with 24 points, and Jakacki followed in the scoring column with 20.
Hiram shot 38.5 percent (25-of-65) and had 16 turnovers to Wooster's 12.
Wooster has its second bye on Saturday and returns to action with a 7:30 p.m. game at Denison on Wednesday, February 15.