MEADVILLE, Pa. –  Behind a big discrepancy on both the foul line and the glass, No. 5 Wittenberg improved to 17-0 with an 87-58 win over the Gators in a North Coast Athletic Conference matinee in the David V. Wise Center.
 
Entering the game shooting at an NCAC-leading 53 percent clip from the field, the Tigers (17-0, 10-0 NCAC) shot a season-worst 39 percent against a physical Allegheny (5-12, 2-8 NCAC) defense.  The sizeable Tigers, however, out-rebounded the Gators 55-33, including 22 offensive boards, while connecting on 23 of 28 attempts to the free throw line, compared to Allegheny's 4-for-6 mark from the stripe.
 
Lamar Todd continued his stellar rookie season, as led the Gators with 17 points and eight rebounds.  Sophomore Jordan Rawls scored 14 points, and Billy Urso added eight, while Brendan O'Toole battled through foul trouble to post seven points, five boards, and two blocked shots. Wittenberg's defense was also stingy, as the Gators were held to just 37 percent from the field, and committed 17 turnovers.
 
Mtchell Balser paced the Tigers with 17 points, bolstered by a 4-for-6 mark from behind the arc, while teammates Chad Roy (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Connor Seipel (14 points, 13 rebounds) each tallied double-doubles. 
 
The teams traded baskets over the first five minutes of regulation, with Todd and Rawls each scoring four points as Wittenberg led 10-8 with 14:56 left in the half.  The Tigers then threatened to pull away, rattling off a 16-4 run to open up a 26-12 advantage with just inside six minutes left.
 
Allegheny chipped away at the deficit as the half wound down. After Urso hit threes on consecutive possessions, O'Toole scored in the paint on back-to-back trips to bring the Gators to within seven, 31-24, with 2:36 left in the opening frame.  The Gators would go cold in the closing minutes, while Wittenberg would take advantage of Allegheny foul trouble to 7-for-8 from the line over the final two minutes to take a 38-25 lead into the intermission.
 
Over the opening 20 minutes, each team totaled 11 field goals, but Wittenberg doubled-up Allegheny with four three-pointers to the Gators' two.  The Tigers also shot 12-for-13 from the foul line, while the Gators went just 1-for-2. 
 
Both teams scored on their opening trips of the second half, before the Tigers would quickly score eight unanswered points in a 90-second span, aided by a trio of offensive rebounds, to open up a 48-28 lead with 17:15 left in regulation.
 
The teams again traded scores over the next several possessions, before a long three-pointer from Rawls at the 15-minute mark gave the Gators some momentum.  Over the next three minutes, Rawls would score six more points, while Zach Shedd added a two-handed dunk, as Allegheny eventually pulled to within 15, 58
-43, with 12:16 to go.
 
The hosts would get no closer, however, as Wittenberg regrouped to rattle off a 12-0 run over the next three minutes to open up a 70-43 lead with 9:01 remaining.  The surge by Wittenberg proved to be decisive, as the Gators were unable to chip away at the deficit down the stretch.
 
The Gator defense held the Tigers to just 44 percent from the field over the second half, but Wittenberg scored 10 second-chance points off of 11 offensive rebounds, outscored Allegheny 24-14 in the paint, and connected on 11 free throws to the Gators' four over the final 20 minutes.
 
Allegheny will return to action on Wednesday, January 24, traveling to NCAC foe Kenyon for a 7:30 p.m. tip.  The Gators will be looking for revenge, as the Lords earned a 64-62 win in the teams' first meeting in December.