Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 70, Oberlin 69

by Michaela Alfano '25

Junior guard Henry Hinkle (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) sank a 3-pointer that put Ohio Wesleyan ahead to stay, and Hinkle and sophomore wing Jessee Battle (Gahanna/Lincoln) sank free throws down the stretch to help Ohio Wesleyan defeat Oberlin in North Coast Athletic Conference play on Saturday at Branch Rickey Arena. 

The win raised Ohio Wesleyan into a tie with Oberlin for fifth place in the NCAC standings, but Oberlin won the tiebreaker and will be the No. 5 seed in next week's NCAC tournament. Ohio Wesleyan will be the No. 6 seed and will face third-seeded Wittenberg at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in Springfield.

With the score tied at 59, Hinkle hit a 3-pointer with 2:50 to play for a 62-59 Bishop lead.  Oberlin answered with an Andrew Gannon lay-in, but on the Bishops' next possession, Battle drilled a 3-pointer and added a free throw to complete a 4-point play that put Ohio Wesleyan ahead, 66-61, with 2:10 to go.

Baskets by Gannon and Asaan Snipes-Rea brought the Yeomen within 66-65, but Hinkle sank a pair of free throws with :22 left, and after Yuuki Okubo sank a pair of free throws with :07 left, Battle was fouled and hit 2 free throws with :06 to play, allowing the Bishops to withstand Okubo's tip-in at the horn.

The Yeomen got on the board first with a layup by Milun Micanovic but Hinkle quickly shot back with a 3-pointer assisted by junior wing David Rice (Cleveland/Parma Padua Franciscan).

After growing a 7-2 lead over Oberlin, the Yeomen battled back, bringing the game between a point before they took over the lead. With 0:55 left on the clock, Hinkle connected a layup to make the score 22-21 in favor of Oberlin.

A pair of missed 3-pointers for OWU and a jumper from Snipes-Rea sent the game into halftime with the Bishops trailing, 24-21.

Ohio Wesleyan started the second half strong, going on a 13-4 run to take the advantage back over Oberlin.  Threes by 3 different Bishops helped pick up the momentum for the team.

The Bishops trailed by 4 with 7:30 to go but back-to-back 3-pointers from Rice and Hinkle gave them their first advantage in the second half. From there, the shots began to fall for the Bishops, hitting a layup, a free throw, and another three of their next possessions.

Hinkle led the team with a career-high 33 points.  Battle had 13 points, senior guard Joey Duke (Marysville) notched 9 of his own, and Rice scored 7 with a team-high 5 assists. Senior post Tony Carter (Cleveland/Parma Heights Holy Name) had 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals.

Box Score