CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — Wabash closed to within a point in the final seconds but could not complete the comeback Wednesday night, falling 64-63 to Wittenberg in the Little Giants' regular-season home finale at Chadwick Court.
Gavin Schippert's tip-in with 36 seconds remaining trimmed the deficit to one, and Wabash forced a stop on the defensive end, but a final 3-point attempt at the horn did not fall as the Tigers escaped with the North Coast Athletic Conference victory.
The loss drops Wabash to 15-9 overall and 9-6 in NCAC play, while Wittenberg improves to 17-7 and 10-5 in the conference. The Tigers also completed a season sweep after claiming a 73-65 win in Springfield in late January.
Despite the setback, Wabash can finish no worse than fifth and no better than third in next week's NCAC Tournament. The Little Giants sit fifth in the standings behind Denison (11-4) and a three-way tie for second between John Carroll, Wittenberg and DePauw at 10-5. A win Saturday at Oberlin, coupled with help elsewhere, could lift Wabash into the third or fourth seed and a home tournament game Tuesday, Feb. 24. A fifth-place finish would send the Little Giants on the road.
Wabash seized early momentum after falling behind 2-0, using a 7-0 run midway through the first half to build a 7-2 lead.
Rich Brooks scored on a driving layup,
Luke Ellspermann converted two free throws, and
Nate Matelic added a pull-up jumper during the stretch.
After Noah Frayer trimmed the margin with a jumper and Tyler Galluch scored inside, the Little Giants responded with another surge.
Colton Stowers' driving layup and a step-back 3-pointer pushed the advantage to 18-9 with 8:52 remaining in the half. When Matelic knocked down a pull-up jumper and converted a second-chance basket, Wabash held a 22-19 edge.
A Gaving Schippert 3-pointer at the 2:55 mark extended the lead to 27-23, and Stowers answered a Wittenberg triple with one of his own to make it 30-26. Schippert converted a layup off a steal in the final 30 seconds to send Wabash into halftime with a 32-30 advantage.
The Little Giants opened the second half with renewed energy. Ellspermann scored on a driving layup and then added two free throws to stretch the lead to 36-30. After baskets by Whack and Ellspermann, Wabash led 41-36 with 16:26 to play.
The Tigers answered with a decisive run. Eddie Brown drilled a 3-pointer to tie the game at 44-44 with 11:43 remaining, and a driving layup moments later gave Wittenberg its first lead since the opening minutes at 46-44. A 10-0 Tiger surge, fueled by Brown's transition finishes and Frayer's interior scoring, flipped a five-point Wabash lead into a 53-46 deficit with 6:58 left.
Wabash battled back. Stowers converted a second-chance tip-in, Ellspermann made two free throws, and Matelic added a pair from the stripe to cut the margin to 55-50. Schippert buried a 3-pointer off a turnover with 3:49 to play, bringing the Little Giants within 57-55.
Frayer answered with a triple on the next possession, and Brown converted four free throws in the final five minutes to keep Wittenberg in front. Matelic's two free throws and a pair from Brooks trimmed the deficit to 62-61 with 2:12 remaining.
Frayer's pull-up jumper with 1:01 left pushed the lead to 64-61. After a missed 3-pointer, Schippert corralled an offensive rebound and tipped it in to make it 64-63 with 36 seconds to play. Wabash forced a miss on the Tigers' final possession, but a contested 3-point attempt at the buzzer would not fall.
Wabash shot 41.7 percent from the field (20-of-48), 31.3 percent from 3-point range (5-of-16), and 94.7 percent at the free-throw line (18-of-19). Wittenberg countered at 53.2 percent overall (25-of-47), 45.5 percent from beyond the arc (5-of-11), and 52.9 percent at the stripe (9-of-17), including a 34-20 advantage in points in the paint.
The Little Giants placed four players in double figures. Matelic led Wabash with 15 points, adding six rebounds. Schippert scored 14 points with seven rebounds and two assists.
Luke Ellspermann added 13 points. Stowers finished with 10 points.
Wittenberg received 19 points from Frayer and 19 from Brown. Galluch added 10 points for the Tigers.
Wabash wraps up the regular season Saturday with a 3 p.m. road game at Oberlin College.
