Harrison Hallstrom scored 14 second-half points to lead Wabash in scoring Wednesday night in the Little Giants' 68-63 loss at Ohio Wesleyan.

Wabash kept with reach of the host Battling Bishops throughout the game, never trailing by more than seven points after building a four-point lead in the first seven minutes of the contest. The inside game of Logan White and Evan Frank provided 14 points and 14 rebounds for Wabash in the first half in a 33-31 deficit at the half.

The Little Giants were forced to overcome adversity and an experienced Ohio Wesleyan (4-3, 2-0 NCAC) squad in the second half of the North Coast Athletic Conference matchup. Frank, the Little Giants' leading scorer entering the contest, was forced to sit the final 20 minutes due to an allergic reaction. Ben Stachowski provided the initial offensive punch with a 12-foot jumper from the left side to tie the game at 33-33. Stachowski, Colten Garland, and White continued to match OWU shot for shot in the early minutes of the second half before free throws from Ben Simpson and a layup by Seth Clark boosted the home team's lead to four points.
 
That's when Hallstrom entered the game to provide a lift off the bench on both ends of the floor. The freshman, who had not stepped on the floor in the first half, came in and took over for Wabash. He connected on five-of-six shots, knocked down all four of his free throw attempts, snared seven rebounds, and served as the rim protector inside on defense.
 
"We've been waiting, and Harry has too, for him to play like he did tonight," Wabash head coach Kyle Brumett said. "He's a really good player, he's a great kid, and he's put in a lot of hard work since he arrived, both on and off the court. It's hard to step right in as a freshman and play against veteran inside guys. We've played Butler and Evansville along with Wooster and Ohio Wesleyan. Harry has come to practice with the right attitude every day. I'm really excited for him to see some success because my staff and I have seen that out of him through the recruiting process and in practices. He gives us another dimension. He really stepped up and played in Evan's spot and gave us what we needed from that five spot."

The lead remained no more than four points until a Hallstrom layup tied the game at 51-51 with 9:06 left to play. A layup and free throw by Nate Axelrod, the 2016 NCAC Player of the Year and D3hoops.com Second Team All-American lifted OWU back in front by three. CJ McMann, Garland, and a pair of baskets from Hallstrom repeatedly cut the lead to one point to answer baskets by the Bishops.
 
Wabash eventually tied the game for the final time on two Hallstrom free throws with 2:59 remaining. The Little Giants were unable to score for the remainder of the game as OWU connected on free throws from Ben Simpson and Seth Clark for a three-point advantage with ten seconds remaining. Wabash set up the final play in an attempt to the game, missing one of its top three-point shooters in Stachowski who left the game with a right wrist injury in the closing minutes. The Little Giants drove in deep and attempted to kick out a pass to the top of the three-point arc for a possible game-tying shot, but the pass was intercepted by Will Orr. Orr provided the final points on a pair of free throws for the five-point differential.
 
White added eight points and finished with a team-high 11 rebounds to go with Hallstrom's 14-point effort. Garland added eight points, as did Frank.
 
Axelrod paced Ohio Wesleyan with 17 points. Clark added 16, and Simpson scored 13 to go with a team-best 11 rebounds.
 
"We had great effort tonight," Brumett said. "There's enough adversity from playing on the road in the NCAC and in playing a veteran team like Ohio Wesleyan. Then we had other things that you have to be ready to step up and deal with. I was really happy with some of our guys who came in off the bench. They were sitting over there and were ready to play rather than sitting there out of the atmosphere of the game. That part was a real positive. That's something we can build off of.
 
"The reality is, when you look at some of the other scores in the league, when you have the chances we've had tonight against Ohio Wesleyan and this past Saturday versus Wooster the losses still sting, they still hurt. We're hoping to learn from that, that it makes our guys hungry and helps them concentrate a little bit better. We played well tonight, but just not good enough to win."
 
Wabash (2-5, 0-2 NCAC) will try for its first conference win of the season Saturday when the Little Giants travel to Kenyon College. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m.