Vinny Buccilla erupted for 14 second-half points, and Josh Whack connected on eight of nine free throws in the final period to lead Wabash to a 69-61 win at DePauw in North Coast Athletic Conference action. The victory, combined with a Wittenberg loss at Oberlin, moved the Little Giants into a tie for first place in the conference standings.
 
Wabash (11-8, 7-3 NCAC) swept the two-game conference series against DePauw (11-8, 6-4 NCAC) and recorded its fourth win in a row against the Tigers and six victories in the last seven meetings. The Little Giants sit in a four-way tie with Wittenberg, Denison, and Wooster in the NCAC standings.
 
Wabash trailed 5-4 four minutes into the contest when Buccilla scored his only point from the free throw line in the first half to tie the score at 5-5. Rich Brooks followed with a three-point basket as part of an 11-1 run over the next four minutes. The streak gave the Little Giants a 15-6 lead they would never relinquish.
 
Wabash extended its lead to 11 points on a pair of free throws from Ahmoni Jones and took a 13-point edge at 22-9 with 8:51 left in the first half on a basket from Jones. The host Tigers went on an 8-0 run over the next three minutes to trim the advantage to five points before an Avery Beaver three-pointer ended the scoreless streak for Wabash. Sam Jacobs scored for DePauw in the final minute of the opening period to cut the lead to four points, but Jones scored a put-back basket off a missed three-point shot to give the Little Giants a 30-24 lead at the break.
 
Buccilla scored early and often in the second half, connecting on his first three-point attempt of the second period to push the lead to nine points. DePauw responded with six straight points, making it a one-possession game at 33-30. Sam Comer and Buccilla answered with back-to-back three-pointers to push the advantage back to nine points. Buccilla added two more three-pointers to answer baskets by DePauw to keep the Little Giants in front 42-32.
 
DePauw made another push to get as close as five points midway through the second half. A basket by Brooks, along with two free throws and a basket from Beaver, helped Wabash maintain its lead. Comer scored a jumper with seven minutes left to play to give the Little Giants a ten-point lead at 57-47.
 
Whack and Jones sealed the game for Wabash in the closing six minutes. Whack scored all of his season-high eight points from the free throw line over the final six-minute stretch, and Jones two charity tosses to give the Little Giants the eight-point victory. Wabash made 19 of 23 free throws in the game, including 12 of 15 in the final six minutes. DePauw shot 15 free throws but made on eight for a 53.5 shooting percentage.
 
Buccilla finished with 15 points to lead Wabash in scoring. Jones added 11 points, and Comer tossed in 10 points. Noah Hupmann, the NCAC Defensive Player of the Week, blocked six shots for the most rejections in a single conference game this season. Comer finished with seven rebounds to pace Wabash as the Little Giants outrebounded DePauw 40-39.
 
Jacobs led the Tigers with 17 points. Kyle Lillwitz scored 12 points, and Ronald Johnson added 11.
 
Wabash returns to Chadwick Court Saturday for a 2 p.m. contest against conference co-leader Wittenberg. The Ohio Tigers defeated Wabash 75-62 earlier this season in Springfield.

Game Notes

» Wabash lit it up from beyond the arc, knocking down 10 treys in the game.
» The Little Giants held the Tigers to only 38.7 percent shooting from the field.
» Wabash never trailed in the second half on its way to victory.
» The Wabash bench made an impact by adding 22 points to its scoring output.
» Wabash had a 40-39 edge on the boards in the win.
» Wabash turned the ball over only three times while dishing out 12 assists.
» Wabash cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 13 offensive boards in the game.