2012 NCAC Men's Basketball Tournament

Wooster Captures Fourth-Straight NCAC Men's Basketball Tournament Championship

Second-seeded Wooster (24-4) earned its fourth-straight NCAC Men's Basketball Tournament championship and 14th all-time after defeating fifth-seeded Denison (14-14), 53-51, on Saturday night at Pam Evans Smith Arena on the campus of Wittenberg University. With the victory, the Fighting Scots have earned the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Div. III Tournament.

Wooster jumped out to an early 10-4 lead at the 14:12 mark of the first half on a layup by sophomore guard Doug Thorpe (Columbus, OH/Eastmoor), but Denison went on an 11-6 run to draw within one, 16-15, with 8:38 left in the half on a jumper from junior Dimonde Hale (Columbus, OH/Northland). The Fighting Scots did build a nine-point edge, 28-19, with 2:16 left in the half, but DU closed out the half on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to two, 28-26, at halftime.

The Big Red earned their first lead of the game, 31-30, in the first minute of the second half after sophomore Alex Longi (Cincinnati, OH/St. Xavier) logged an old fashioned three-point play with a layup and a free throw. DU built a seven-point edge, 48-41, with 8:46 left in the game on a jumper by Hale, but the game quickly turned in Wooster's favor after the Fighting Scots went on a 10-0 run to go ahead 51-48 with 3:43 left in the contest after junior Josh Claytor (Oxford, OH/Talawanda) knocked down a pair of free throws. The Wooster defense stepped up in the final minutes of the game and fended off a few DU attempts to tie the game en route to securing the two-point victory.

Wooster senior Justin Hallowell (Worthington, OH/Thomas Worthington), who was named the 2012 Al Van Wie award winner as the tournament's most valuable player, scored 14 points and pulled down seven rebounds, while Claytor finished the game with 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Hale led all scorers in the contest with 19 points, while fellow senior Larry Farmer (Gurnee, IL/Warren Twp.) closed scored four points and hauled in a team-high eight rebounds in the final game of his career.

The NCAA Div. III Tournament field will be announced on Monday afternoon. A live selection show will be available on ncaa.com.

2012 All-Tournament Team
Tim Brady, Ohio Wesleyan
Clayton Black, Wittenberg
Matt Fegan, Wooster
Dimonde Hale, Denison
Larry Farmer, Denison

Al Van Wie Award (Tournament MVP): Justin Hallowell, Wooster
 

Semifinal Recaps:

Fifth-seeded Denison (14-13) earned its first-ever trip to the NCAC Tournament championship game after upsetting top-ranked Wittenberg (21-6) by a score of 66-58 on Friday evening in Springfield. The Big Red jumped on the Tigers early, scoring the first 13 points of the contest and built a 22-4 advantage with 13:49 showing on the first half clock after junior Jon Akpapunam (Bowie, MD/St. Mary's) nailed a three-pointer. DU , which continued to apply the pressure and took a 39-19 lead into intermission, maintained a double digit advantage for a majority of the second half; however, Wittenberg slowly chipped away at the lead and drew within six, 61-55, with 1:10 left in the game. Denison sealed the game in the final minute by going 5-for-6 at the charity stripe in the final minute to post the eight-point victory. Denison junior Dimonde Hale (Columbus, OH/Northland) and senior Larry Farmer (Gurnee, IL/Warren Twp.) both registered double-double performances as Hale had game-highs in both points (20) and rebounds (15), while Farmer finished the game with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Wittenberg senior Josh McKee (New Carlisle, OH/Tecumseh) led the Tigers with 16 points, while senior Jacob Weide (Fort Wayne, IN/Homestead) had a team-high nine rebounds.

Second-seeded Wooster (23-4) advanced to the NCAC Tournament championship game for the fourth year in a row after defeating No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan (20-7), 89-80, on Friday night at Pam Evans Smith Arena in Springfield, Ohio. The Fighting Scots earned a huge advantage in the contest at the free throw line, shooting 85 percent (22-of-26) compared to just 55 percent (18-of-33) for the Battling Bishops. Five Wooster players scored in double figures, led by senior Matt Fegan (Strongsville, OH/Strongsville) with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. Ohio Wesleyan senior Tim Brady (Dublin, OH/Jerome) led all scorers with 18, while OWU junior Marshall Morris (Tulsa, OK/Jenks) posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Quarterfinal Recaps:

Top-seeded Wittenberg (21-5) survived an upset bid at the hands of eighth-seeded Kenyon (11-15) and used a strong second half surge to secure the 73-61 victory in the quarterfinal round of the 2012 NCAC Men's Basketball Tournament. With the victory, the Tigers have earned the right to host the tournament's semifinals and finals for the first time since the 2003-04 season. Kenyon, which took a 29-27 lead into halftime, continued its upset bid into the second half by stretching its lead out to seven points on two different occasions, including holding a 43-36 edge with 13:20 showing on the second half clock. Wittenberg regained control of the lead for good at the 9:06 mark of the second half on a three-pointer from senior Michael Cooper (Springfield, OH/South) and continued to add on to the lead with six-straight points from senior Josh McKee (New Carlisle, OH/Tecumseh). Free throw shooting proved to be the difference in the game as Wittenberg drained 30-of-37 attempts from the line compared to Kenyon's 12-of-20 effort from the charity stripe. Senior Clayton Black (Lancaster, OH/Lancaster) led the Wittenberg charge with 21 points, six rebounds, six blocked shots and five assists, while Cooper added a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore Ikenna Nwadibia (San Francisco, CA/Stuart Hall) led the Lords with 18 points and 10 rebounds in the 12-point loss.

Second-seeded Wooster (22-4) scored the final eight points of the game to fend off upset-minded DePauw (13-13) with a 59-51 triumph on Tuesday evening at Timken Gymnasium. Wooster seemed to be in control of the contest, holding a 51-42 lead with 4:32 left in the game; however, seventh-seeded DePauw reeled off nine-straight points and tied the game at 51-51 on a layup by freshman Connor Rich (Tipton, IN/Tipton) with 55 seconds showing on the game clock. Wooster had an immediate answer as senior Justin Hallowell (Columbus, OH/Thomas Worthington) sank a three-point bucket on the ensuing possession to put Wooster back on top, 54-51, and the Fighting Scots iced the game in the final 30 seconds by going 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Hallowell led all scorers in the game with 25 points after shooting 7-of-12 from the field, 4-of-8 from beyond the arc and a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Rich led the Tigers with 16 points, while junior Barry Flynn (Indianapolis, IN/Cathedral) pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.

Ohio Wesleyan senior Tim Brady (Dublin, OH/Jerome) single handily outscored sixth-seeded Hiram (14-12), 11-1, during a key second-half OWU run that would put the Battling Bishops up for good and springboard them to a 96-86 triumph over the Terriers. Ohio Wesleyan (20-6), the third seed in the NCAC tournament, seemed to be in trouble early as Hiram jumped out to an early 16-5 advantage with 14:12 showing on the first half game clock. The Bishops slowly chipped away at Hiram's lead and eventually drew even with the Terriers, 42-42, on a layup by sophomore Reuel Rogers (Columbus, OH/Bexley) with 1:29 remaining in the half. Brady nailed a three-pointer just 12 seconds into the half to give OWU a 47-44 advantage; however, Hiram kept the score within reach and again found themselves on the positive side of the scoreboard, 73-72, after junior Alan Sheppard (Wadsworth, OH/Wadsworth) converted a layup with 7:18 remaining in the game. Brady took control of the game from that point on and scored 15 of his game-high 33 points in a four-minute stretch  that helped OWU build a nine-point advantage, 87-78, with 3:44 left in the game. Hiram was led by senior Jamaal Watkins (South Euclid, OH/Brush) who posted a double-double with a career-high 32 points and 10 rebounds in his final collegiate game. Ohio Wesleyan junior Marshall Morris (Tulsa, OK/Jenks) complimented Brady's performance with 18 points and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes of action.

In the final men's game of the night, fifth-seeded Denison (13-13) upset No. 4 Wabash (18-8), 74-60, to collect its first victory in the NCAC Men's Basketball Tournament since the 1997-98 season. With Denison trailing Wabash 31-22 at halftime, senior Larry Farmer (Gurnee, IL/Warren Twp.) put the Big Red squad on his back and scored 23 of his game-high 28 points in the second stanza to lead DU to the 14-point victory. Wabash held a comfortable 39-26 lead with 15:21 remaining in the game after senior Derek Bailey (Bloomington, IN/South) sank a jump shot, but Farmer took matters into his own control and erased the Little Giant's lead by scoring the games' next 19 points to put DU on top, 43-39, with 10:31 left in the game. The Big Red slowly pulled away from the Little Giants down the stretch by nailing 7-of-10 free throw attempts in the final two minutes of the game to secure the victory. Denison Junior Dimonde Hale (Columbus, OH/Northland) also played a key factor in the Big Red's upset win as he recorded a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Bailey led the way for the Little Giants with a 20-point performance.

Tournament Preview:

Wittenberg (14-2, 20-5) wrapped up its 11th outright North Coast championship with wins over DePauw, 56-55, and Hiram, 72-50. Wooster has compiled 14 overall titles to lead the league, sharing the championship with Wittenberg in the 1991-92 season and with Allegheny in ‘88-89. Between the Tigers and the Fighting Scots, one of the two teams has had at least a share of every NCAC Championship dating back to the 1988-89 season.  Allegheny and Ohio Wesleyan each boast four crowns. The Gators shared the championship with the Tigers in 1993, Wooster in 1989 and Ohio Wesleyan in 1988 and ‘86. The Battling Bishops also won outright titles in 1987 and ‘85.

Wittenberg will be the top seed in the 28th annual NCAC Men’s basketball tournament for the first time since the 2003-04.  Tournament play begins with quarterfinal games at campus sites on Tuesday evening. Tournament seeding follows the final regular-season standings with the top four seeds hosting the quarterfinals. The Tigers host the eighth seed, Kenyon (5-11, 11-14). Second seed Wooster (12-4, 21-4) hosts seventh seed DePauw (7-9, 13-12); third-seeded Ohio Wesleyan (11-5, 19-6) hosts sixth-seeded Hiram (7-9, 14-11) and fourth-seeded Wabash (10-6, 18-7) hosts fifth-seeded Denison (9-7, 12-13). Tuesday’s winners will advance to the semifinals and championship on Friday and Saturday at the site of the highest remaining seed after the quarterfinals. Semifinal games will be held at 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. with the high seed playing in the later time slot. The championship game is set for 7:00 p.m. This year’s champion will again receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, which begins with first-round play on March 1.

Wittenberg will be making is 23rd-straight NCAC tournament appearance since joining the conference during the 1989-90 academic year. As the two seed, the Tigers made it to the championship game in 2011, but were defeated by Wooster, 82-68. Wittenberg will be looking to capture is first NCAC tournament title since winning back-to-back championships in 2005 and 2006... Wooster is the three-time defending NCAC Tournament champion and has 13 post-season titles to its credit. Just over half of those wins (1995, ‘99, ‘00, ‘03, ‘07, ‘09, ‘10, ‘11) came as a No. 1 seed. Wittenberg has six tourney titles. The Fighting Scots and Tigers combined to win every tournament between 1999-2007. Ohio Wesleyan (4), Allegheny (3) and Kenyon (1) round out the list of past men’s tourney champs... Wooster has appeared in the finals 19 times, including 11-straight from 1997-2007, while Wittenberg has made 14 championship game appearances, followed by Allegheny (8), Ohio Wesleyan (7), Kenyon (3) and Wabash (3)... The third-seeded Battling Bishops will be looking to capture their fifth over tournament title.  OWU’s last tournament championship came in the 2008 season when the Bishops defeated Wabash, 89-72... Wabash enters the 2012 tournament as the fourth seed and will be looking to earn a spot in the championship game for the third time in the last five seasons. The Little Giants appeared in the 2008 title game, falling to Ohio Wesleyan, 89-72, and then came back the next season and dropped an 84-72 decision against Wooster in the championship game. Since joining the NCAC in the 1999-2000 season, Wabash has successfully appeared in 12-consecutive post season tournaments... Denison, which has never appeared in the championship game, will be looking to advance past the opening round for the first time since the 1998 tournament ...Hiram is making its ninth tournament appearance, but is still looking for its first-ever victory... DePauw is making its first ever appearance in the tournament... Wooster leads all men’s teams with an overall .794 winning percentage in NCAC Tournament games (54-14). Wittenberg follows at .714 (40-16). Wabash is 13-12 (.520), while Ohio Wesleyan follows close behind at .510 (25-24).