Box Score The Little Giants produced their best first-half scoring effort of the season Sunday in a 62-54 victory at Oberlin College. Wabash rode a 40-31 halftime advantage to its third North Coast Athletic Conference victory of the season.
One day after hitting 17 shots for the game in a 72-55 loss at Kenyon, the Little Giants shot 16-of-25 in the first half against the Yeomen. Wabash cooled off in the second half, connecting on just seven of its 20 shots from the field, but held Oberlin to 8-of-30 shooting to earn the win.
The Little Giants trailed 5-0 to open the contest before
Pete Nicksic, who made his return to the starting lineup, hit a layup off a pass from
Daniel Purvlicis to start a 9-0 Wabash run. The junior forward provided seven of the nine points, with the final basket coming from his substitute,
Marcus Kammrath. The Little Giants got 18 of their 40 first-half point in the paint.
Wabash stretched its first half lead to eight points just over midway through the period when
Ross Sponsler drilled a three-point shot to make it a 22-14 contest. The Little Giants led by as a many as 12 points thanks in part to Nicksic, who finished the first half with 15 points.
The Little Giants moved in front by 13 points midway through the final period before the Yeomen mounted a final surge. Trailing 53-40, Oberlin (4-13, 2-6 NCAC) put together a 9-0 run before
Austin Hawn nailed two free throws to snap the drought. Nicksic, Hawn, and
Andy Walsh connected on their free throw attempts down the stretch when the Yeomen were forced to foul, allowing the Little Giants to hold on for the eight-point victory.
Nicksic scored 21 points to pace the Little Giants, hitting 9-of-14 shots from the field. He also grabbed 11 rebounds to record his first double-double of the year. Sponsler added 12 points , while Walsh and Hawn tossed in eight apiece. Geoff Simpson scored 28 of Oberlin's 54 points by hitting 10-of-18 shots from the field and 4-of-6 three-point tries. Wabash held Andrew Fox, who entered the game averaging 11.8 points a contest, to just 1-of-9 shooting and five total points.
The victory snaps a three-game NCAC losing streak for the Little Giants. Wabash improves to 5-12 overall and 3-5 in conference play. The Little Giants face Ohio Wesleyan University at home Wednesday evening at 7:30 p.m.
