The Wabash bench --- led by a career-high 12 points from Brian Shelbourne and a season-best 11 points from Derek Bailey --- outscored Ohio Wesleyan 33-5 to boost the Little Giants to a 68-67 victory in Delaware, Ohio Wednesday night.
The Battling Bishops got a final shot away just ahead of the buzzer, but Tim Brady’s last-second effort hit the side of the backboard and landed in Bailey’s hands to end the game.
The victory keeps Wabash in second place in the conference standings, tied with Wittenberg and Allegheny with 9-4 records in NCAC play.
Shelbourne, Bailey (left), and the rest of the second unit made up for a Wabash offense that struggled in the first half. Wes Smith started the night tied for the North Coast Athletic Conference scoring lead with a 19.1 points-per-game average, but was held scoreless in just eight minutes of first half action before picking up his third foul. Senior Chase Haltom also went scoreless until late in the contest.
Aaron Brock picked up the scoring slack for the starters, finishing with a team-high 15 points.
Wabash trailed by two points at the half, but quickly fell behind 40-31 thanks to a 7-0 run by OWU over the first few minutes of the second period. Smith caught fire offensively to trim the lead three, scoring six straight points for the Little Giants.
The Bishops stretched the lead back to six points before Bailey and Shelbourne connected on six straight free throws to time the advantage to four. Ben Burkett scored on a putback basket with 7:30 left to draw Wabash to within four before Bailey struck again. Shelbourne stole the basketball from OWU and found Bailey streaking toward the Wabash basket for a layup and a foul. Bailey’s free throw gave Wabash a 54-53 lead.
A three-point play by Brady put OWU back in front, but Dominique Thomas answered with a three to to give the Little Giants another one-point lead. Wabash either held the advantage or stayed tied until a three-point play by Pat Pellerite with 1:33 left to play put the Bishops up 62-61.
Shelbourne (right) responded with another layup, giving the sophomore guard his highest career output. Pellerite got an easy layup at the other end before Haltom finally made his way into the scorebook.
The second-leading three-point shooter in Wabash basketball history ended his scoreless streak by hitting a trey with 37 seconds left to play, giving the Little Giants a 66-64 edge. A free throw by Brock with 26 seconds remaining stretched the lead to three points, and a Haltom free throw made it a four-point game with 16 seconds left.
Brady brought the Bishops back with a three-pointer with eight seconds left. OWU fouled immediately after the basket, but Brock --- who went to the court hard earlier in the contest on a three-point attempt --- missed both free throws. The Bishops had one last shot, but Brady’s driving attempt down the right side of the lane would not go, giving the Little Giants a huge road victory in conference play.
Brady finished with 17 to lead OWU (10-12, 7-6 NCAC) in scoring. Pellerite added 15, while Marshall Morris had 12 and Andy Winters finished with 10 points and nine assists.
Wabash (14-7, 9-4 NCAC) returns home Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest against Oberlin College.
