Wabash got a double-double from seven-foot, two-inch post player Noah Hupmann as four Little Giants scored in double figures in a 79-66 road win at Hiram to remain in a tie for first place in the North Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings.
 
Hupmann recorded his first career double-double at Wabash (15-8, 11-3 NCAC) with a career-high 14 points. He grabbed 11 rebounds and also blocked three shots. Hupmann was a perfect 6-of-6 from the field with four second-half dunks.
 
Avery Beaver, reigning NCAC Men's Basketball Offensive Athlete of the Week, scored a team-best 17 points. His three-pointer with 11:52 remaining in the first half completed a 9-1 scoring run for the Little Giants to erase a seven-point Hiram (2-21, 0-14) lead. The host Terriers evened the score at 16-16 on the next trip down the floor, but a put-back jumper from the right baseline by Hupmann gave Wabash the lead for the remainder of the contest.
 
The Little Giants led by as many as ten points in the first half thanks to a 7-of-15 shooting effort from three-point range in the opening 20 minutes. Wabash finished the game, making 11-of-24 shots from behind the ard for 45.8 percent while shooting 27-of-59 from the field overall. The Little Giants struggled from the free throw line, connecting on only 14-of-30 tries from the line for 46.7 percent. Four missed free throws in the final three minutes of the contest allowed Hiram to trim a 16-point Wabash lead to ten points with 1:17 remaining in the contest before the Little Giants put away the 13-point win.
 
Wabash scored 20 fast-break points to go with 30 points in the paint. The Little Giants limited Hiram to only four three-point baskets. The Terriers finished 22-of-62 from the field (35.5 percent), making only 4-of-19 long-range shots. Hiram connected on  18-of-25 free throws. Hiram outrebounded Wabash 45-38 but could only turn six additional offensive boards into three more second-chance points than the nine scored by Wabash.
 
Ahmoni Jones added an 11-point effort for Wabash in the critical road victory. Rich Brooks tallied 10 points coming off the bench. Trent Jakacki led Hiram with 21 points. James Moore and Tristan Martin-Marshall each scored 10 points.
 
Wabash remains deadlocked with Wooster with identical 11-3 conference records with one week remaining in the NCAC regular season. The Little Giants play host to Ohio Wesleyan University on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Chadwick Court. Wooster travels to Hiram Wednesday before the regular-season finale between the Fighting Scots and Wabash in Crawfordsville on Saturday, February 17.