WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College men's basketball team build a double-digit halftime lead and held off a Muskingum University rally to earn a 69-58 Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) victory at Fred Raizk Arena on Wednesday evening.
"All year, our bench has showed up with energy and a "stay ready mentality', and tonight was a great example of that," Head Coach Micah Mills said. "Everyone who came in the game was ready to go and ready to make plays."
After the first six-plus minutes saw both teams tied 7-7, the Quakers locked down on defense, allowing just a free throw over the next five minutes. During that time, Andrew Clark capped a 13-1 run with a three-pointer and a layup in transition to give the hosts a 20-8 advantage. Wilmington held the double-digit lead through the remainder of the half and led by as many as 16 when a Nick Malagreca layup with 3:13 to play made the score 35-19. The Quakers would go into the locker room up 38-25.
Through the early stages of the second half, WC maintained a 10-point cushion, but after a Bryce Bird triple at the 12:49 mark, the hosts went cold for three minutes. Muskingum got back within six and eventually five points on a Duane Davis jumper with 6:48 to play, but after a timeout from Mills, Collin Barker scored five points including a big triple at the top of the arc. Three possessions later, with the score 60-53, Gavin Heimlich nailed a long-distance triple late in the shot clock to put the game away.
Wilmington finished the game 24-of-52 (46.2 percent) from the floor including a 10-of-20 (50.0 percent) mark on long-distance shots. Muskingum made 21-of-62 (33.9 percent) from the floor, but went just 5-of-24 (20.8 percent) from beyond the arc. Both teams made 11 free throws while the hosts won the battle of the boards 43-36. The Quakers also outscored the Muskies 36-28 in bench points.
"Our guys were locked in on the defensive side tonight," said Mills. "To hold them to only five made three pointers and 33 percent from the floor was high level for us!"
Davis finished with 20 points to lead all scorers for Muskingum while Zaveon Croff had 11 points. Wilmington featured a balanced scoring attack with seven players scoring at least a half-dozen. Farley led the team with 14 points while Barker added 10 in 12 minutes off the bench. Achirem finished with eight points, 12 rebounds and four assits.
Wilmington heads to Marietta College on Saturday. Tip-off in scheduled for 3 p.m.
