Four upperclassmen amass double-digit scoring in road win
In what would become a thrilling shootout for the ages, the Little Giants traveled to Denison to defend their spot at the top of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rankings. After the Little Giants dropped their first matchup against Denison on their own home court in early January, the stage was set for a rematch with conference-defining stakes. The February 3 contest was a captivating watch from start to finish that finally saw the Little Giants win 89-81.
“This game was circled on our calendar as soon as we lost the first game,” said Ahmoni Jones ’24. “Going into the game, we had just won a big game against Wittenberg. And we were thinking that we control our own destiny moving forward and if we can just go on the road and get this big win, it would put us in a really comfortable position going into the end of the season.”
With their first-place status on the line, the Little Giants walked into the Denison gym and put on an offensive demonstration that the Big Red will not forget anytime soon. The team was never far from the next bucket as they matched their season high of 89 points, ringing up points across the court including the free throw line where they were 23-28. Shooting a season high of 10-19 (52.6%), from three-point land, Wabash made the opposing defense look like little more than an exercise in futility.
On the other side, the Big Red lived and, eventually, died by the three-ball. With their own season-high three-point night, a scorching 15-27 (56.6%) from deep, Denison was able to patch over some struggles in other areas, like their rebounding disadvantage. They found enough points across the board, including a 48-point night from the bench, to ride the Little Giants’ heels for most of the game. But eventually the luck wore out. A few missed threes allowed Wabash to take control of the back-and-forth contest with a quick double-digit lead, sealing out of the race for the conference crown.
“It was definitely frustrating knowing that the team was just hitting tough shots back-to-back,” said Jones. “But I think that we made it as tough as we possibly could. And by the end of the game, we had to just tip our hat off to them. But we got enough shot stops down the stretch and we were able to pull through, offensively, in those last three minutes.”
Four veterans led the way for the Little Giants. Vinny Buccilla ’25, Ahmoni Jones ’24, Sam Comer ’24 and Avery Beaver ’24 combined for 71 points in the game. Comer and Buccilla recorded 18 and 16 points respectively. Meanwhile Jones achieved a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. But it was Beaver who stole the show for the Little Giants, as he went off for a career-high 20 points, while hitting 4-7 from deep.
“During the game, I actually had no idea what [number of points] I was at,” said Beaver. “But after the game, when I saw the stat sheet, I was pretty happy. Pretty cool to finally reach that 20 mark.”
Beaver, who also scored 18 in the team’s prior game against Kenyon, was named the NCAC Offensive Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week. He was joined by Noah Hupmann ’25 who’s four blocks helped him earn the Defensive Athlete of the Week for the third-straight week.
On top of a major win, the contest was a huge milestone for one of the players. Ahmoni Jones, who continues to shine in his final season, played his 111 game to surpass Jack Davidson ’22 as the all-time leader for basketball games played at Wabash.
“I think it’s really cool to be able to park myself in history with a lot of great players before me,” said Jones. “But it just shows how much love that I have for this place and all the hard work that I was willing and able to give to this place. I just appreciate everyone who’s helped me through that process.”
This win solidified the team’s turnaround from a mid-season slump that nearly wrecked their chances of winning the conference. Denison was the final NCAC team left to overcome, before they claim to be over the hump. But now they stand in the best position to win the NCAC.
“We never wavered,” said Beaver. “We’re still taking the same approach as we were in December when we weren’t necessarily getting the job done. For this team, that’s just kind of the steps we had to take to overcome those adversity and, and it made us stronger to where we are today. And hopefully we can get the job done in the next three games.”
Three games remain in the regular season for the Little Giants 14-8 (10-3 NCAC). Their next outing will be a game against the conference floor Hiram who stands at 2-19 (0-12 NCAC) this season. The first of the final two home games will be against seventh-place Ohio Wesleyan, who managed to defeat Wabash in their first contest, while the Little Giants were suffering through a winning drought.
“We are going to continue to have great energy as a team and really try to pay attention to the game plan each game,” said Comer. “We have put ourselves in a great place, but we can’t have any let downs.
The final game will be a home rematch against second-place Wooster on February 17, a game which may end up being the determining battle for first place in the NCAC. For Wabash this will be déjà vu, as they continue to compete with the familiar Fighting Scots, who have been the second-place team in both of Wabash’s NCAC Conference Championships in 2022 and 2023.
“We have done it before,” said Bucilla. “And we know what it takes, especially late in the season. We get everyone’s best shot from now on, because we have that top spot right now. We know every game for the rest of the year is pretty much win or go home.”