Box Score
DePauw 78, Ohio Wesleyan 69

Senior wing Jack Clement (Bellefontaine) had 6 points and sophomore wing David Rice scored 5 as Ohio Wesleyan narrowed a 14-point second-half deficit to just 3, but DePauw withstood the Bishop comeback and went on to a win in a North Coast Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinal matchup on Tuesday at Branch Rickey Arena.

Clement drove for a lay-in to give the Bishops a 38-35 lead with seconds to go in the first half, but DePauw's Ryan Jacobson beat the first-half buzzer with a stepback 3-pointer that left the game tied at 38 at the intermission.

The Tigers rang up the first 11 points of the second half, with Nolan Niego starting and ending the run with 3-pointers, with a Sam Jacobs lay-in and a Grant Niego 3-pointer in between, to take a 49-38 lead, and the visitors would extend the margin to 56-42 on back-to-back lay-ins from Billy Bach and Camden Brown.

Trailing, 58-44, with 13:01 left in regulation time, the Bishops responded with a 3-pointer from senior post Grant Spicer (Cincinnati/Lakota East) to kick off their 16-5 run before Rice scored on a putback and Clement went coast-to-coast for a lay-in.  A Clement lay-in and a jumper by freshman guard Isaac Ward (Circleville/Logan Elm) narrowed the gap to 61-55, and when Rice converted a 3-point play and Clement followed with a jumper, Ohio Wesleyan was within 63-60 with 7:25 to play.

The Bishops were still within 74-69 after another Rice putback with 2:07 remaining, but DePauw sealed the game at the free throw line, going 4-for-6 from the stripe during the final minute of play.

Ohio Wesleyan had raced to an early 12-4 lead as sophomore guard Henry Hinkle (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) connected on a trio of 3-pointers and Clement added another trifecta during the first 2-plus minutes of play.  The Bishops hit 4 of their first 5 shots, all from downtown, during that stretch.

DePauw took the lead when Elijah Hales hit a pair of free throws for a 17-16 lead, and there would be only one lead of more than 3 points during the rest of the first half, that coming when a Clement jumper put the Bishops ahead, 36-32, with 1:29 to play.

Clement led the Bishops with 31 points and 4 assists.  Hinkle finished with 16 points and Rice had 12 points and a team-best 7 boards.

Box Score