Short hit the outside shot with Wabash trailing by one after a free throw by Robb Hern and Wabash turnover gave the basketball to the Big Red with 1:01 left in the extra period. Senior Brady Claxton (Shelbyville, IN/Shelbyville) came through for the Little Giants on the defensive end, stealing the basketball with 49 ticks showing on the clock. With time winding down on both the shot clock and game clock, Short canned his only three-point basket of the game after taking a pass from fellow senior Joe DesJean (Indianapolis, IN/Perry Meridian) to give Wabash the win.
Wabash jumped out to an eight-point lead midway through the first half before the Big Red cut the Little Giants’ advantage to one point at halftime. The Little Giants took a five-point lead in the opening minutes of the second half, only to see Denison tie the game at 46-46 with 14:00 left in regulation. Another five-point Wabash advantage was wiped out again by Denison in the waning moments of the second half. With the game tied at 65-65, the Big Red took a three-point lead over the next two minutes, forcing Wabash to find a three-point play in the final minute. That play came from DesJean, who hit his first basket of the second half and added a free throw with :50 left to tie the game at 69-69.
The outcome could have been different for Wabash had it not been for the defensive effort of freshman forward Bart Fortner (Nashville, IN/Brown County). Fortner, who scored six points in his first varsity start in a Wabash uniform, blocked a layup attempt by Denison’s Clint Shepherd that sent the game to an extra five-minute period.
Wabash had to come from behind in the overtime as Denison took a three-point lead to open the bonus period. A three-pointer by sophomore David Wagner (Belleville, IL/Belleville) gave Wabash a one-point lead with 2:25 showing on the clock, but Denison responded with free throws to move back in front on the scoreboard, leading the final heroics by Short.
The Little Giants’ shooting woes came to an apparent end, connecting on 24-of-47 shots for 51.1-percent in the game. The difference for Wabash came from behind the three-point arc. The Little Giants hit 11-of-26 from behind the arc while holding the Big Red to 5-of-17 for 29.4-percent.
Claxton led the Little Giants with 20 points, while DesJean pitched in 17. Senior Eric Buck (Indianapolis, IN/Cardinal Ritter) continues to reach the double-figure scoring mark, finishing with 15 points coming off of a 21-point performance on Wednesday in Wabash’s loss at Ohio Wesleyan. Perry Young had 22 points to lead Denison in scoring. Center Alan Bradshaw finished with 21.
The victory moves Wabash to 13-5 for the year, 7-3 in the NCAC. The Little Giants move to within one game of second place in the conference standings, taking advantage of a Wittenberg loss at Allegheny to close the gap between the Tigers and Wabash. The Little Giants will travel to Richmond, Indiana on Wednesday night to play in-state rival Earlham College at 7:30 p.m.