WILMINGTON — The Wilmington College men’s basketball team build a double-digit halftime lead and held off a Muskingum rally to earn a 69-58 Ohio Athletic Conference victory at Fred Raizk Arena Wednesday evening.
“All year, our bench has showed up with energy and a ‘stay ready mentality’, and tonight was a great example of that,” WC head coach Micah Mills said. “Everyone who came in the game was ready to go and ready to make plays.”
Wilmington shot 46 percent from the field, including 10 of 20 from three-point range. The Quakers held the Muskies to 5 for 24 shooting beyond the arc. The Quakers also outscored the Muskies 36-28 in bench points.
“Our guys were locked in on the defensive side tonight,” said Mills. “To hold them to only five made three-pointers and 33 percent from the floor was high level for us.”
Wilmington featured a balanced scoring attack with seven players scoring at least six points. Domenic Farley led the team with 14 points while Collin Barker, the Wilmington High School grad, added 10 in 12 minutes off the bench. Obed Achirem finished with eight points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
Wilmington heads to Marietta College Saturday with the tip-off scheduled for 3 p.m.
After the first six-plus minutes had the teams tied 7-7, the Quakers locked down on defense, allowing just a free throw over the next five minutes. Andrew Clark capped a 13-1 run with a three-pointer and a layup in transition to give the hosts a 20-8 advantage.
Wilmington held the double-digit lead through the remainder of the half and led by as many as 16. The Quakers would go into the locker room up 38-25.
Through the early stages of the second half, WC maintained a 10-point cushion, but after a Bryce Bird three-pointer at the 12:49 mark, the hosts went cold for three minutes. Muskingum got back within five points on a Duane Davis jumper with 6:48 to play.
After a timeout from Mills, Barker scored five points including a big three at the top of the arc. Then Heimlich nailed a long-distance basket late in the shot clock to put the game away.
