Box Score The Wabash basketball team erased an 18-point deficit Friday night to claim a 70-68 victory against Hiram. Three Little Giants scored in double figures to help create the rally.
 
"We really shot ourselves in the foot by not hitting shots," forward Daniel Purvlicis said. "We missed probably eight or nine shots inside. We talked at halftime about getting after it and getting consecutive stops. Right off the bat, we had seven stops and that set us up for the comeback."
 
Kasey Oetting came off the bench to lead Wabash with 17 points. Purvlicis scored 14 and grabbed 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season, while Kyle Aiton added 11 points.
 
The Terriers led at halftime 36-24 and maintained their advantage early in the second half.  The Little Giants used a 16-4 run to even the score at 49-49 with 11:37 remaining. Oetting tied the game on a three pointer after Houston Hodges found him alone in the corner. Oetting gave Wabash its first lead moments later when he cut to the basket, 53-51.
 
Wabash increased its pressure over the last 20 minutes of the game. The Little Giants forced nine turnovers and picked up 18 second-chance points on the night compared to nine for Hiram.
 
"We just continued to attack, and it helped us out a lot because we were able to get to the free-throw line a good deal," Purvlicis said. "We also hit our inside shots and that freed up threes by Kasey and everyone else."
 
Purvlicis scored the team's most important second-chance points with 16 seconds remaining. After an miss by Marcus Kammrath, Purvlicis was alone on the back side and easily corralled the board and put in the layup. The bucket gave Wabash a 68-65 lead, and forced Hiram to attempt contested three pointers at the other end.
 
"Each individual played his heart out to get back into the game," Coach Antoine Carpenter said. "Offensively, we knew we had to come out and get buckets. But more importantly, defensively we knew we had to get stops."
 
Multiple defensive breakdowns ailed the Little Giants in the first half. Hiram found a handful of easy layups out of their half-court sets, and shot 59.3 percent in the opening period. The Terriers connected on less than 40 percent of their shots in the second.
 
"Hiram did a really good job with the high-ball screen in the first half," Carpenter said. "They cleared guards out and we were chasing them a little bit too much. We made an adjustment to stay underneath the high-post man, and make them score having to dribble over the top."
 
Hiram's guards deserved the extra attention. Senior Aaron Stefanov entered the game leading the North Coast Athletic Conference in scoring with a 20.3 points-per-game average. Backcourt mate Josh Edmondson started the night averaging 10.4 points per game.
 
"Stefanov is a real tough guard because he hits really difficult shots," Carpenter said. "You really have to try to contain him—you're not going to totally stop him from scoring."
 
Aiton and Hodges drew the responsibility of defending Stefanov for most of the night. The duo frustrated him in the second half and constantly denied him the ball — Stefanov shot 2-of-5, and scored 7 of his 17 points in the final period.
 
Friday night's victory had similarities to Wabash's win at Hiram on January, 4. After only scoring 15 first-half points in the earlier contest, the Little Giants shot 51.9 percent in the second half to defeat the Terriers, 63-56.
 
Edmondson matched Stafanov with 17 points for Hiram. Forward Chris Zurowski scored 11 and had 6 rebounds.
 
Austin Burton scored 8 points for the Little Giants. He assisted on the highlight play of the night. With 8:36 remaining in the game, Burton found Oetting cutting along the baseline. Oetting received the pass and elevated for the two-handed slam to give Wabash a three-point lead.
 
Andy Walsh scored 7; five came during the key 16-4 run. Hodges led the team with 4 assists.
 
The Little Giants have a quick turnaround with a home game against Allegheny tomorrow. The Gators won their first NCAC game of the season with a 69-66 victory at DePauw Friday evening. Saturday's tip is set for 2 p.m.
 
"This one feels good, but we need to go over the scouting report for Allegheny again and get prepared," Carpenter said. "I just told our guys to get good rest tonight and prepare to battle tomorrow."