Andrew Zimmer poured in 34 points and senior Ryan Stephens added seven rebounds in the final home game of his career to lift Wabash to a 77-74 victory over Kenyon College at Chadwick Court Saturday afternoon.
The victory secured the fifth seed for the Little Giants in the upcoming North Coast Athletic Conference tournament. Wabash will travel to play the fourth seed, Allegheny College, on Tuesday evening at 7:45 p.m. in the quarterfinal round. (View photos from the win over Kenyon.)
Wabash picked up Saturday's win despite a rough start. Kenyon scored the first seven points of the contest before a three-pointer by Andy Root final put the Little Giants on the scoreboard. Wabash drew within two points of the Lords when Zimmer knocked the ball loose near midcourt and raced to the offensive end of the floor for a slam dunk. A minute later Chase Haltom dropped a three through the hoop to put Wabash in front by one.
The Little Giants would stretch that lead to seven points on another Haltom trey midway through the half, but it wouldn't last for long. Trailing by nine points after a Zimmer three-pointer with 5:16 left in the opening period, Wabash went into the same offensive funk that cost the Little Giants a chance at a win two nights earlier at Wittenberg.
While the Little Giants wouldn't score for the rest of the half, the Lords had no problem putting the ball in the basket. Korey Haddox brought Kenyon to within four points with a layup, then hit a jumper and a free throw a minute later to make it a 27-26 contest in favor of Wabash. The final blow came when Haddox scored his seventh point in the five-minute stretch on a jump shot with 10 seconds left in the period to send Kenyon to the locker room with a 28-27 lead.
Aaron Brock started the second half with a three of his own to give the Little Giants the lead once again, but Wabash would see an eventual six-point advantage disappear once again when Bryan Yelvington hit a three with 9:56 left in the contest. Once again the Little Giants would rally behind the efforts of Zimmer. Constantly drawing a double team every time he touched the ball in the post, Zimmer went to the free throw line 20 times in the second period, hitting 16 of those attempts while scoring 20 of his 34 points in the final stanza. His free throws boosted the lead back to nine points nine points with 42 seconds left. The Lords took advantage of a three, a couple of missed free throws and a turnover by Wabash in the final seconds before Haddox hit the last shot of the game to make it a three-point victory for the Little Giants.
Stephens had four offensive boards and handed out three assists in his final appearance at Chadwick Court. His biggest contibution may have come at the defensive end of the floor, playing 29 minutes while bottling up the lane and frustrating the Lords' offense by tying his career-best mark with three blocked shots.
Root added 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting, all five from beyond the three-point arc where he was 5-of-6 for the contest.
Wabash finishes the regular season with a 10-15 overall record and a 7-9 NCAC mark.
Photos : (top) - Junior Earl Rooks dished out two assists, scored five points, and grabbed five rebounds in the victory.
(bottom) Senior Day festivities included the recognition of Ryan Stephens and his parents. Senior manager Ross Dillard was escorted by Athletics Hall of Fame member and longtime and legendary Wabash supporter Virginia Hayes H'98.