DELAWARE, Ohio — Wabash erased most of a 23-point second-half deficit and pulled within two points in the final five seconds, but Ohio Wesleyan converted late free throws to hand the Little Giants a 79-75 North Coast Athletic Conference road loss Wednesday night at Branch Rickey Arena.

Wabash (14-8, 8-5 NCAC) trimmed the margin to 77-75 on a Luke Ellspermann floater with five seconds remaining, but Quinn Hart made two free throws in the closing seconds to secure the victory for Ohio Wesleyan (7-15, 4-9 NCAC), snapping the Bishops' four-game losing streak and ending a four-game winning streak by the Little Giants in the series. The loss drops Wabash into fifth place in the conference standings with three regular-season games remaining. The loss is the fourth in the last six games for the Little Giants.

Wabash led only once, taking a 2-0 edge on a Rich Brooks basket with 18:27 to play in the first half. Kevin Gallagher answered with a three-pointer on the next possession to put Ohio Wesleyan ahead 3-2. The contest featured one tie and one lead change, with the Bishops holding the advantage for more than 37 minutes.

Ohio Wesleyan seized control midway through the opening half with a 12-0 run. After Kadyn Ellery split a pair of free throws to tie the score at 9-9, Quinn Hart drilled a three-pointer to start the surge. Carson Murphy followed with a jumper in the paint, Phil Wallace knocked down a three-pointer off a turnover, Murphy added a layup, and James McCarthy finished inside to push the lead to 21-9 with 10:52 left in the half.

The Bishops extended the margin to as many as 16 points in the first half and carried a 47-31 advantage into the locker room after shooting 19 of 28 (67.9 percent) in the opening 20 minutes, including 6 of 9 from three-point range. Wabash finished the opening stanza making 10-of-26 shots from the field (38.5 percent), but missed all seven of its three-point tries.
Ohio Wesleyan stretched the lead to its largest at 54-31 with 17:09 remaining in the second half, completing a 13-0 run that spanned halftime behind a three-pointer and driving layup from Jessee Battle.

Wabash began to chip away. Ellspermann scored inside and later hit a three-pointer, while Gavin Schippert added a second-chance basket to cut the deficit to 56-40. Rich Brooks connected on a second-chance three-pointer at the 11:02 mark to make it 59-43, and Ellspermann buried another three to trim the margin to 59-46.

After Ohio Wesleyan rebuilt the lead to 67-54, the Little Giants produced their best stretch of the night. Brooks converted a fast-break layup off a steal, Ellspermann scored on tip-in layup, Arlondo Hall drained a three-pointer from the right wing, and Ellspermann knocked down a three-pointer with 3:47 left to cap a 10-1 run and pull Wabash within 68-64.

Brooks hit another three with 1:45 remaining to cut the deficit to 74-70. Ellspermann added a free throw after a steal to make it 74-71, and Keegan Manowitz scored in the lane with 45 seconds left to trim the margin to 76-73.
Ellspermann's floater with five seconds remaining brought Wabash within 77-75 before the Bishops sealed the outcome at the free-throw line.

Ellspermann finished with 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting, including 3 of 4 from three-point range. His 26 points mark his third-highest total of the season and his second-most against an NCAC opponent. Brooks added 20 points, extending his streak to five consecutive games with at least 14 points. Schippert recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double in as many games and fourth overall this season.

Ohio Wesleyan placed three players in double figures. Battle led the Bishops with 18 points, while Isaac Ward and Hart each scored 15. Wallace added seven points off the bench as Ohio Wesleyan held a 29-14 edge in bench scoring.

Ohio Wesleyan shot 53.8 percent from the field (28 of 52), including 9 of 20 (45.0 percent) from three-point range, while Wabash connected on 25 of 63 shots (39.7 percent) and went 8 of 28 (28.6 percent) from behind the arc. The Little Giants made 17 of 23 free throws (73.9 percent), compared to 14 of 20 (70.0 percent) for the Bishops.

The Bishops outscored Wabash 38-26 in the paint, while the Little Giants owned a 21-4 advantage in second-chance points with a 36-31 overall rebounding edge.

Wabash returns to action Saturday, February 14, with a conference home game against Kenyon College at Chadwick Court. Tipoff has been moved from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. to accommodate Senior Day ceremonies honoring the Little Giants' senior class.