Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 84, St. Vincent 75
Junior guard Taylor Rieger (Lewis Center/Olentangy Orange) scored 11 of his 16 points during the second half as 21st-ranked Ohio Wesleyan built a lead and held St. Vincent at arm's length in taking a first-round NCAA Division III tournament decision from the Bearcats on Saturday at a packed Branch Rickey Arena.
Ohio Wesleyan advances to host Cabrini (Pa.) in a second-round matchup on Saturday, March 9.
The contest started slowly, with each team scoring only once during the first 4 minutes of action.
The Bishops got hot first, taking an 11-7 lead as senior guard Andy Winters (Columbus/Bishop Watterson) hit a lay-in and then a 3-pointer.
St. Vincent answered with a 7-0 run, collecting a jumper from Grant Latus, a 3-point play by J.C. Howard, and a steal and lay-in by Sean Kett to take a 14-11 lead with just under 12 minutes to play in the period, and the Bearcats took their biggest lead of the game at 27-23 on Dillon Stith's jumper at the 3:13 mark.
Trifectas from Rieger, Winters, and senior wing Greg White (Centerville) helped the Bishops tie the game at 34, and the score was deadlocked at 36 at the half after Isaac Turner and Rieger traded points during the final minute.
Back-to-back 3-pointer from Stith and Turner restored St. Vincent's 4-point lead at 46-42 early in the seocnd half, and the Bearcats were still ahead, 48-44, after Kett scored at the 15:29 mark.
Winters buried a 3-pointer to kick off an 8-0 run that gave Ohio Wesleyan the lead for good. Winters followed with a 3-point play, and senior post Marshall Morris (Tulsa, Okla./Jenks) sank a pair of free throws for a 52-48 lead with 14:09 left in regulation time.
St. Vincent pulled to within a single point with the help of lay-ins by Turner and Stith, the latter bringing the Bearcats within 55-54 with 8:52 remaining.
Ohio Wesleyan responded with a pivotal 6-0 run that provided the Bishops breathing room. Senior guard Eric Easley (Columbus/Thomas Worthington) hit a pair of free throws, junior wing Dre White (Lima/Bath) followed with a lay-in, and senior wing Anjuwon Spence (Cranston, R.I./Moses Brown) and junior post Reuel Rogers (Columbus/Bexley) added free throws to extend the Bishop lead to 61-54 with 7:19 to play.
After that run, the Bishop lead never shrunk below 4 points. A Turner 3-point play was countered by Spence's 3-pointer, Dre White answered a Turner 3-pointer with a tip-in off an offensive rebound, and so on. In all, St. Vincent closed to within 4 points on 5 different occasions, only to see the Bishops answer each threat.
Senior wing Vaughn Spaulding (Reynoldsburg) tipped in a missed shot at the 3:05 mark, and Morris buried a pair of free throws to push the margin to 74-66 with 2:21 to go.
Kett rallied the Bearcats with a pair of free throws, a 3-point play, and a lay-in, but Rogers provided a pair of baskets to keep it a 2-possession game, and Rieger slammed the door by hitting a pair of free throws with :32 to play, giving Ohio Wesleyan an 81-73 advantage.
Winters led the Bishops with 21 points and 4 assists, while Rieger finished with 16 points and Rogers added 10 points. Morris grabbed a team-high 11 boards.
Turner led St. Vincent with 29 points, while Kett finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Stith scored 13 points.
Box Score
