Kyle Aiton drained a step-back three-pointer with 15 seconds left in Wednesday's home game to give Wabash its final lead in a 75-70 home victory over 17^th-ranked Ohio Wesleyan.
 
Aiton's triple broke a 70-70 tie 32 seconds after OWU's Claude Gray nailed a three to even the score for the fourth time in the game. Wabash head coach Kyle Brumett called a timeout after Gray's triple to set up the final basket for the Little Giants.
 
"We wanted to put the ball in Kyle's (Aiton) hands to see if we could get something easy for (Daniel) Purvlicis around the basket," Brumett said. "We improvised a little bit. We had so many guys make plays today. That gave us the opportunity to play with the lead. We talked a few weeks ago about not knowing how to play with the lead. We're learning as we go. We'll learn a lot from today, but it's a heck of a lot better to learn while you win."
 
The Little Giants owned the lead for 31:45 of the 40-minute contest.
 
Wabash found its way to victory by pushing a four-point halftime lead to 11 points with 7:30 left in the second half. Daniel Scofield's put back produced the 11-point advantage and capped a 12-2 run by the Little Giants. OWU outscored Wabash 19-8 over the next 4:49 to even the score at 67-67. Nate Axelrod, who finished with a season-best 26 points for the Battling Bishops, accounted for 12 of the 19 points during that stretch for Ohio Wesleyan.
 
Aiton gave Wabash another two-point with his jumper at 2:17 before Zack Patton added a free threw after a missed three by Gray for a 70-67 advantage for the Little Giants.  Axelrod turned the ball over after OWU grabbed the rebound off Patton's missed second free throw, but the Battling Bishops stole the ball from Aiton on the ensuing possession, get the ball to Gray who raced up the floor and connected on the game-tying three.
 
Aiton's game-winner came with 15 seconds left from two feet behind the arc after dribbling to the left corner then reversing toward the top of the key. Gray fired another triple at the other end with five seconds remaining, but this time missed everything. Aiton snared the rebound and hit the final two free throws of the game for the five-point differential. He led Wabash with 18 points and seven rebounds, including a 4-of-8 shooting effort from beyond the arc.
 
Kasey Oetting added 16 points, while Purvlics scored 14. Scofield and Houston Hodges each scored eight points. Ben Simpson tallied 14 points for Ohio Wesleyan (11-3, 6-1 NCAC), while Gray added 13.
 
The Little Giants owned the lead for 31:45 of the 40-minute contest. Wednesday night's win gives Wabash sole possession of third place in the latest North Coast Athletic Conference standings. Ohio Wesleyan falls into a tie with the College of Wooster for first place, one game ahead of the Little Giants.
 
"In the first half we played really well defensively and probably gave a few buckets away offensively," Brumett said. "I knew we had something good. Our guys went into the locker room at halftime and they were on each other. They were kicking themselves because we could have played better. That's what we're trying to build --- a culture where guys are going to hold themselves and each other accountable. What an awesome environment tonight. This place is going to be crazy as everyone gets back. What a home court."
 
Wabash (10-4, 5-2 NCAC) begins a three-game road trip Saturday, traveling to Kenyon College for a 3 p.m. tipoff. The Lords (5-9, 3-4 NCAC) defeated Denison 72-69 Wednesday evening.