DELAWARE, Ohio – The Gators were unable to maintain a blistering start, as they fell 105-84 to a potent Ohio Wesleyan squad in an offensive shootout at the Branch Rickey Arena.

The Gators connected on 13 of their first 18 field goal attempts in the first half, but the Battling Bishops ended the opening frame on an 18-4 run, and Allegheny was unable to recover from the 16-point halftime deficit.

Junior Evan Zabriski finished with a career-high 28 points, and was one of three Gators to score in double figures.  On the strength of five three-pointers, freshman Billy Urso scored 15 points, while Brandon Smith scored 14 and tied Zabriski for the team lead with seven rebounds.

Ohio Wesleyan (20-3, 13-3 NCAC) used a lethal long distance attack, as 18 of its 36 field goals came from behind the arc.  Reigning NCAC Player of the Year Claude Gray connected on seven of the Bishops' trifectas, and finished with 24 points, all in the first half.  Teammate Nate Axelrod added 23 points, going 8-for-11 from the field.

Zabriski led the Gators in the frenetic opening minutes of the game, as the junior scored 14 points in the first six minutes of play.  Urso added a pair of trifectas, as the Gators scored on eight of their first nine possessions.  Ohio Wesleyan was just as hot, answering with a basket of their own each time, and the two teams were tied at 22 with 14 minutes left in the half.   

The Battling Bishops threatened to pull away, posting a quick 10-2 run to go up 32-24 with 11 minutes left, before the Gators countered.  Zabriski scored five more points in a 70-second span, before Urso and Conor Macomber each connected on long three-pointers to pull the Gators to within two, 38-36, with just over seven minutes left.

A bucket from Smith kept the deficit at two with 6:34 left, but led by the duo of Gray and Axelrod, the Battling Bishops took control.  The duo combined for 19 points over the final seven minutes of the half, spearheading a 20-6 run to close the half and give Ohio Wesleyan a 58-42 lead at the intermission.

In the offensive first half, both teams shot well, as the Gators hit on 56 percent of their shots, and the Battling Bishops 58.  Zabriski and Urso each connected on three three-pointers in the opening 20 minutes, as the Gators went 7-for-13 from behind the arc.   Led by a 7-for-9 showing from Gray, the Battling Bishops went 9-for-20 from behind the arc, while they also scored 11 points off of nine Allegheny turnovers.

Ohio Wesleyan opened the second half in much the same fashion as it finished the first, scoring 24 point – with four more three-pointers -  in the first seven minutes to increase its lead to 82-57.  Allegheny looked to chip away, using a 15-5 run that featured six points from Zabriski and four from Chris Koryak to cut the gap to 15, 87-72, with eight minutes remaining in regulation.

The Gators would get no closer, however, as the Battling Bishops countered with a 9-1 run to up their lead to 23, and they enjoyed a cushion of at least 20 points for the remainder of the contest.

Both teams cooled down considerably over the second half, with the Gators shooting 41 percent and the Battling Bishops 44.  The Gators also limited the Battling Bishops to a 33 percent mark from behind the arc, but OWU still managed nine three-pointers, compared to a 4-for-14 showing by the Gators.  Ohio Wesleyan ended with a 51 percent (36-for-70) mark from the field for the game, and the Gators 48 (29-for-61).

Allegheny will now close out the season with a pair of home contests, beginning with a 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night clash against Wooster at the David V. Wise Center.