CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — The third-seeded Wittenberg men's basketball team lost to second-seeded Wooster, 79-62, in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament semifinals at site host Wabash on Friday.

The Basics

• Records: Wittenberg (18-9 overall), Wooster (18-9 overall)
• Venue: Chadwick Court - Crawfordsville, Ind.
• Tournament Site
• Tournament Bracket
• Wooster swept both games against Wittenberg during the regular season, winning 78-77 on Jan. 13 and 80-70 on Feb. 10.
• The tournament champion will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Stat Leaders

• Junior Trey Killens (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mason) led the Tigers with 19 points and six rebounds. He was named to the All-Tournament Team.
• Sophomore Eddie Brown (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy Orange) added 14 points and six rebounds.
• Junior Cameron Harrison (Eaton, Ohio/National Trail) led Wittenberg in assists with three, and senior Jeff Queen (Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle) led in steals with two.

The Game

• The Tigers opened the game down 5-0 but then clamped down defensively, allowing Wooster just 11 points over the opening 11 minutes.
• A dunk by freshman Keith Rivers (Akron, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) gave Wittenberg its largest lead at 18-11 with 8:26 left in the first half. Later, a four-point play by Harrison and a coast-to-coast finish by freshman Tyler Galluch (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central) closed out the first half and handed the Tigers a 36-31 halftime lead.
• For the first half, Wittenberg was led by Brown with eight points and Harrison with seven. Shooting percentages were almost dead even over the first 20 minutes, with Wittenberg at 12-of-28 (42.9%) and Wooster at 12-of-29 (41.4%). Wittenberg was a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line in the first half.
• Wooster started the second half much like the first, outscoring the Tigers over the opening minutes. A long three-pointer from Killens with 12:40 remaining tied the game at 47-47.
• An 8-0 Wooster run was followed by a 5-0 Wittenberg run and a 57-57 tie with nine minutes remaining in the game. From there, Wooster took control, outscoring the Tigers 18-4 over the next seven minutes.
• The game featured 18 ties and 12 lead changes, but none in the final nine minutes.
• After the two teams finished the first half separated by just two rebounds, Wooster dominated the boards over the final 20 minutes to finish with a 45-31 rebounding advantage.
• Wooster shot 53.8 percent from the field in the second half, compared to 30.8 percent for Wittenberg.

Post-Game Quotes

• "I'm very proud of the way our team competed tonight. They gave a great effort." - Head Coach Matt Croci
• What did it mean to you to be a Wittenberg Tiger?
  • "To be a Wittenberg Tiger meant to me the possibility of competing at a high level with some of my best friends in the world and giving it your all every day. It's been a blast." - Senior forward Jeff Queen

Records & Milestones

• The Tigers were seeking their 19th all-time appearance in the tournament championship game and their eighth tournament title, including their first title since winning back-to-back crowns in 2018 and 2019.
• Wittenberg is now 60-69 all-time against Wooster. The Scots have won eight in a row in the series, including all three meetings in the 2023-24 season. This game was just the third in 129 all-time meetings that was played on a neutral court.
• Wooster (1,823 wins) and Wittenberg (1,857 wins) are NCAA Division III's two winningest teams.
• Eighth-year head coach Matt Croci is now 142-60 all-time at Wittenberg.
• Killens finished the 2023-24 season with 979 career points, making him just 21 shy of the 1,000-point plateau. He had 511 points this season, which is 25 shy of breaking into the program's all-time top 10 for points in a season. He entered Friday's game ranked second in the NCAC in points per game (18.9) and third in assists per game (3.5).

Up Next

• The 2023-24 season is now complete for the Wittenberg Tigers.