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On this date in area sports history …
On this date, six years ago, Dec. 11, 2002, the Wittenberg men’s basketball team knocked defending Division III national champion Otterbein. Complete story on the jump:
Published in News-Sun Dec. 12, 2002
WITT DEFEATS DEFENDING D-III CHAMPS.
HARRIS’ DOUBLE-DOUBLE LEADS TIGERS
By KEITH WALTHER, News-Sun Sports Writer
WESTERVILLE, Ohio — What’s wrong with Wittenberg?
Apparently nothing.
Wittenberg, which has struggled out of the gate this season with two home losses, may have found its stride Wednesday night. The Tigers turned in a gutty performance in knocking off Otterbein — the defending Division III national champions — 79-71 in front of 1,371 fans at the Rike Center.
The victory snaps the Cardinals’ 18-game home win streak and, much more importantly, gives Tigers a huge confidence boost.
“Our mindset was definitely different tonight,” said Wittenberg coach Bill Brown. “We refused to give anything but our best mentally and physically. We try to stay on an even keel, but I’m sure as heck going to allow the team to enjoy this one.
“They are our biggest non-conference rival, the defending national champs. Plus, we hadn’t beaten them in three years or so, and you are on the road playing in a very hostile environment.
“There’s not any team in the United States who wouldn’t be proud of coming into Otterbein and leaving with a win. Ohio Dominican and Cedarville were proud (of beating Wittenberg at home) and so yes, I’m proud of our guys. “
Wittenberg improved to 5-2 while Otterbein fell to 4-3. Senior B.J. Harris led the Tigers with 20 points and 14 rebounds while Andy Bucheit added 16 off the bench.
But the biggest news was the play of senior forward Kevin Longley, who has battled leg injuries all year. Longley finished with 15 points and six boards.
“We knew this would be a big win for us if we could get it,” Longley said. “This helps us get Wittenberg back where we belong. We overcame turnovers (17) and still got the win, which says something about us. We never buckled. “
And they could have.
Trailing 48-37, Otterbein went on a 15-3 run that knotted the score at 53-53 with 12:20 to play. But the Tigers hung tough, answering with a 6-0 run of their own for a 59-53 lead.
Again, the Cardinals made a move and closed to within one, 65-64, on a pair of free throws by Tony Borghese with 5:24 remaining. As the crowd whooped itself into a frenzy, the Tigers remained cool and calm as Harris scored on an inside move and Bucheit nailed back-to- back 3-pointers to make it 73-64 — and the Cardinals never got closer than five the rest of the way.
“This was about respect, showing everyone that — yeah, we lost two games early and we are human — but we’re still tough,” Harris said. “We have just not been able to get over the hump this year, but today they tied it up on us and we just kept playing our game and stayed with it.
“We are not quite back to normal — we still need to get that Wittenberg swagger back — but we’re getting there. And this helps for sure. “
Otterbein coach Dick Reynolds, for one, was impressed.
“I don’t think I have seen that kind of physicalness at the Division III level along with the depth they have,” Reynolds said. “They have a nice ballclub, a very nice club. “
Wittenberg used its size to fashion a 44-32 rebounding edge, including 18 offensive boards. Still, defensively, the Tigers had a tough time controlling the red-hot Phil Susi, who scored 26 points — 14 better than his previous career-best for the Cardinals.
Otterbein led only twice in the game, 9-8 and 11-10, before Wittenberg began to flex its muscles inside. The Tigers led 17-11 after a pair of Kenny Molz free throws with 11:55 left and then, after the Cardinals cut the gap to 31-27, Witt went on a 12-2 run to take a 42-29 lead with 35 seconds remaining in the half.
The Cardinals, however, cut it to 42-33 at the half after a pair of free throws and a steal and lay-up by Joel Brockman as time expired.
Harris had 12 points and nine rebounds in the first half while Bucheit had eight and Russ five. Susi, who came into the game averaging just 4.3 points per game, led the Cardinals with 10 first half markers.
“This feels great because I’m a senior and have never beaten Otterbein,” Harris said. “We feel we’re putting it together. “
“I don’t think we were ever in turmoil or anything,” added Brown. “We had a key injury (to Longley) that we were dealing with and a lot of new players … but our mindest was different tonight. We were ready to play. “
WITTENBERG (79) — Brywczynski 1-4 2-2 4, Emmons 2-6 1-3 7, Longley 6-11 2-4 15, Harris 8-15 4-5 20, Walker 1-5 2-2 4, Molz 1-3 2-2 4, Hoane 0-2 0-0 0, Bucheit 6-7 0-0 16, Brady 2-2 0-0 4, Russ 2-3 1-2 5. Totals: 29-58 14-20 79.
OTTERBEIN (71) — Borghese 4-12 3-4 11, Minister 2-7 4-6 8, Susi 6-10 11-13 26, Ross 2-9 0-0 4, Hadley 2-8 2-2 6, Starling 0-0 0-0 0, Walton 3-4 2-2 8, Brockman 2-4 1-4 5, Ousley 0-10-0 0, Hohman 1-3 0-0 3. Totals: 22-58 23-31 71.
Halftime: Wittenberg 42-33. Three-point goals: Wittenberg 7-17 (Bucheit 4-4, Emmons 2-4, Longley 1-1, Hoane 0-2, Brywczynski 0-3, Walker 0-3), Otterbein 4-16 (Susi 3-4, Hohman 1-1, Brockman 0-1, Hadley 0-2, Ross 0-3, Borghese 0-5). Rebounds: Wittenberg 44 (Harris 14), Otterbein 32 (Susi 9). Shooting percentages: Wittenberg .500; Otterbein .379. Assists: Wittenberg 11 (Molz 3), Otterbein 14 (Ross 5). Turnovers: Wittenberg 17; Otterbein 11. Fouled out: None. Technical Fouls: None. Records: Wittenberg 5-2; Otterbein 4-3. A—1,371.
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