CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. – The Allegheny men were unable to secure a season sweep of Wabash, as the Little Giants defeated the Gators 72-61 in North Coast Athletic Conference action.
 
Allegheny finished with three more field goals on the afternoon than the Little Giants, as the Gator defense limited the hosts to just 33 percent from the field (21-for-63).  However, Wabash shot 80 percent (20-for-25) from the foul line and sank 10 three-pointers, compared to the Gators' 4-for-10 mark from the stripe and 5-for-16 performance behind the arc.
 
Jordan Rawls scored 25 points to lead both sides, while he also snared eight rebounds to top the Gators.  Teammate Brendan O'Toole added nine points, shooting 4-for-6 from the field, while rookie Tavian Strobridge came off the bench to score eight.   
 
It took nearly two minutes of game action, but Wabash took the game's first lead, and would hold onto the advantage for the next several minutes.  The margin would eventually grow to 15-11 with 12:30 left in the half, before Allegheny buckets by Rawls and Nijon Kirkman tied things up with 11:23 left. 
 
After Kirkman's tying jumper, the teams would trade a number of empty possessions over the next several minutes, before Wabash came to life with a 12-4 run that was bookended by three-pointers from Connor Rotterman to push the hosts' lead to 27-19 with 5:41 left in the half.
 
The Wabash lead would eventually grow to 32-22, before Allegheny scored eight of the final 11 points of the half, including six from Rawls, to close the gap to 35-30 at the intermission.
 
Rawls totaled 14 first half points to lead all scorers, as both Allegheny and Wabash finished the opening 20 minutes with 12 field goals apiece.  The Little Giants, however, made five three-pointers to Allegheny's two (both by Rawls), while also shooting 6-for-8 from the foul line to the Gators' 4-for-10.
 
Wabash wasted little time in the second half to create some separation, as they quickly scored the first five points to again open up a double-digit lead.  The Little Giants' run eventually extended to 13-3, as they pulled in front 48-33 with 16:03 left in regulation.
 
The hosts continued to gradually increase their lead, eventually going up 57-38 with 8:02 remaining, before the Gators' offense came to life.  Jumpers from Zack Pateras and Rawls on back-to-back trips cut the gap to 15, before Zach Shedd's dunk, Strobridge's long three-pointer, and O'Toole's layup made it a 12-point game, 61-49, with 4:30 left.
 
Two minutes later, Strobridge hit his second trifecta of the evening, before Billy Urso got the Gators back to within single digits with his trey cutting the gap to 64-57 with 1:51 remaining.
 
The spread would remain at seven points entering the final minute, but the Gators could get no closer, as Wabash went 8-for-8 from the foul line to thwart the late Allegheny comeback.
 
Jack Davidson led Wabash with 23 points, bolstered by a 12-for-14 performance from the foul line.  Rotterman, Alex Eberhard, and Harrison Hallstrom each added 11 points for the Little Giants, while Logan White grabbed nine rebounds to lead both sides.
 
The Gators return to action on Wednesday, February 7, when they host the College of Wooster in the Wise Center beginning at 7 p.m.