THE FACTS
No. 3 Wesleyan (28-1) 82, Gettysburg (21-8) 60
What: NCAA Div. III men's basketball tournament second round
When: Saturday, Mar. 8
Where: Middletown, Conn.
THE SKINNY STORY
Wesleyan, ranked third in the latest d3hoops.com poll, used a 14-0 run late in the second to break open an eight-point lead and ultimately defeat Gettysburg 82-60 in the NCAA Div. III men's basketball second round.
THE LEADERS
•
Jordan Stafford (Galloway, N.J./St. Joseph Hammonton) led the Bullets with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists.
FOR THE FOES
• Nicky Johnson led the Cardinals with 20 points and eight rebounds.
THE REST OF THE STORY
• Behind four points from Nicky Johnson, Wesleyan jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the game's first 2:04. Trailing 11-6,
Jordan Stafford connected on a driving layup to start a 6-0 burst that put Gettysburg in front by one with 12:37 to play. The teams traded points until the Cardinals were able to edge the lead out to 25-18 nearly four minutes later. The Bullets clawed back within three on a
Nate Williams (Morganville, N.J./St. John Vianney) second-chance bucket but Wesleyan scored the next seven to open up a 10-point lead for the first time with 4:43 showing. The advantage remained between seven and 10 the rest of the half with the hosts taking an 41-32 lead into the break.
• Baskets from Stafford and
Aidan Mess (Brookeville, Md./Mt. St. Joseph) in the first 64 seconds of the second half closed the margin to four but a Fritz Hauser 3-pointer and Shane Regan fast-break layup extended the back to double digits. The lead remained between eight and 12 points until a Johnson layup ignited the game-clinching 14-0 run with 6:36 to play.
THE INSIDE STORY
•
Carl Schaller (Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley) finished with 11 points while
Aidan Mess added 10.
