Wednesday night’s basketball game at Chadwick Court became a shoot out between two top scorers in the North Coast Athletic Conference. The 70-42 victory for Wabash over Earlham came from the Little Giants’ offensive balance.
Wabash was able to run away from Earlham thanks to a career-high 17 points from junior Ben Burkett. The Southmont High School graduate battled Earlham's AJ Sutherlin, one of two North Montgomery High School players on the Earlham roster, in front of a crowd of local fans that had watched the two battle throughout their high school careers.
Wes Smith and Sutherlin entered the game as two of the league’s leading scorers, and both battled to a near draw in final scoring column. Smith finished with 22 points while Sutherlin scored 23 of the Quakers’ 42 points. In fact, Sutherlin accounted for the first 19 points of the game for Earlham before Ryan Taylor’s jumper came ahead of the halftime buzzer.
Burkett wasn’t the only Wabash player to make a major dent in the scoring column. Aaron Brock added 13 points in the lopsided victory.
Despite Sutherlin’s 19-point first half effort, the Little Giants jumped out to a 21-11 lead midway through the first half. The lead became 21 points thanks to an 11-point run down the stretch, with seven points coming from Burkett. The Little Giants eventually took a 38-21 lead at the half.
Smith was nearly perfect in the second half, connecting on 4-of-5 shots before coming out with 10 minutes remaining and the outcome of the game no longer in doubt. Burkett added four second-half points and grabbed four additional rebounds, finishing with eight for the contest.
Smith hit 9-of-12 shots from the field, including three dunks and a three-pointer, while Sutherlin was 8-of-18 from the field overall.
The Little Giants kept Sutherlin in check throughout the final period, holding him to 1-of6 shooting and four total points in 14 minutes of action.
The Wabash bench accounted for 12 points. Freshman Jordan Surenkamp drilled two long-range shots for a career-high six points. No other Earlham (3-17, 1-10) player had more than five points in the game.
The meeting was the last between Wabash and Earlham as members of the NCAC. The Quakers will leave the conference at the end of the season to join the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Wabash (13-6, 8-3 NCAC) eclipsed its conference win total from last year, picking up its eighth NCAC victory of the season after going 7-9 in the 2008-09 campaign. The Little Giants return to action at Chadwick Court in special Sunday afternoon contest, tipping off at 2 p.m. against 21st-ranked Wooster.
Wabash was able to run away from Earlham thanks to a career-high 17 points from junior Ben Burkett. The Southmont High School graduate battled Earlham's AJ Sutherlin, one of two North Montgomery High School players on the Earlham roster, in front of a crowd of local fans that had watched the two battle throughout their high school careers.
Smith hit 9-of-12 shots from the field, including three dunks and a three-pointer, while Sutherlin was 8-of-18 from the field overall.