Wabash knew how important the weekend stretch of North Coast Athletic Conference games would be to make some noise in the conference race. The Little Giants opened the two-game weekend series on Friday night by capturing a 79-72 win over Allegheny College at Chadwick Court.
The Little Giants used a fast, counter-attacking offense to beat the Gators down the floor to earn the win. Wabash had 22 fast break points in the game to only two for Allegheny. The Little Giants also pounded the glass on missed shots, outrebounding Allegheny 46-34. Wabash snagged a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, converting them into 15 second chance points.
Both teams battled early, tying the game five times before Allegheny could take a seven-point lead with 8:57 showing on the first half game clock. A fast break layup by Matt Shook (Kendallville, IN/East Noble) followed a drive to the basket by Adonis Joseph (Mishawaka, IN/Mishawaka) to cut the lead to three. Shook drained the free throw after being fouled on the shot to make it a two-point game, drawing the Little Giants closer to tying the game.
That wouldn’t happen until Joseph converted a three-point play with 11 seconds left in the first half to cap a 10-5 run in the final 2:55 of the first half.
Senior Matt Storm (Anderson, IN/Lapel), back in the lineup for the first time in four games for Wabash, provided the final highlight of the first half for Wabash. Storm camu up with a steal and layup in the final seconds of the opening period to give the Little Giants a 41-39 lead.
It would be the last of four lead changes in the game. The Little Giants would push their lead to 17 points with 9:32 left in the contest to take a commanding 67-50 advantage in the contest. Wabash would need every point in the closing minutes to hold on for the win.
Allegheny began trimming the Little Giant lead, cutting it to nine points with 4:08 left in the contest after holding Wabash scoreless for over two minutes. Freshman Wes Koch (Winchester, IN/Winchester) scored a putback basket with 6:32 remaining in the game to give the Little Giants a 71-57 edge. Wabash wouldn’t score again until Joseph hit a layup with 54 seconds remaining after seeing Allegheny cut the lead to 73-68.
The Gators would get no closer. Wabash connected on a layup and four consecutive free throws in the closing seconds to secure the win.
Shook tied his career-high, leading Wabash in scoring with 21 points. Storm added 15 points and Joseph tallied 12. Koch led the Little Giants with nine rebounds. Storm and junior David Wagner (Belleville, IL/Belleville) paced a Wabash defense that finished the game with a season-best 14 steals. Each had three steals in the contest.
Wabash moves to 2-0 in conference play with the victory, 4-6 overall for the season. The Little Giants will try to complete the weekend sweep on Saturday in a 3 p.m. contest against Hiram College at Chadwick Court.