Sophomore wing Ben Simpson and junior post Claude Gray hit 3-pointers during an 8-0 run that gave 16th-ranked Ohio Wesleyan a 16-8 lead, but 24th-ranked St. Olaf pulled away during the second half and withstood an Ohio Wesleyan comeback to defeat the Bishops, 90-78, in a first-round contest of the NCAA Division III tournament on Friday in Whitewater, Wis.

With the score tied, 8-8, Simpson and Gray buried 3-pointers, and Gray followed with a jumper that gave the Bishops a 16-8 lead with 13:46 left in the first half.  The Oles would close to within 18-17 as Riley Aeikens converted a 3-point play and Ben Figini followed with a lay-in off an Aeikens feed.

Ohio Wesleyan responded with another 8-0 run, collecting a 3-pointer by junior post Matt Jeske, a Simpson lay-in, and a 3-point play by freshman guard Nate Axelrod to take their biggest lead of the game at 26-17 with 7:29 left in the first half.

St. Olaf came back late in the half, getting a 3-pointer from Robert Tobroxen and lay-ins by Aeikens and Mason Braden to pull within 34-33 with 1:20 left in the period, and when Axelrod was whistled for a foul on a 3-point at the buzzer, Sterling Neilsen hit the first 2 of the 3 free throws to give the Oles a 37-36 lead at the break, their first lead of the game.

Figini and Sam Daly opened the second half with baskets to give St. Olaf a 41-36 lead, and the Oles would extend the margin to 51-42 with the help of 2 more Figini lay-ins and a Daly 3-pointer.

The Bishops narrowed the gap to 51-49 as Gray knocked down a 3-pointer and Simpson hit a pair of hoops from the lane, and Ohio Wesleyan was still within 55-53 after a pair of free throws by junior wing Zak Davis midway through the period.

St. Olaf then went on a 9-0 run, with Justin Pahl contributing a 3-pointer and a lay-in that gave the Oles a 64-53 lead with 7:05 to play. 

Ohio Wesleyan fought back in the closing minutes, with Simpson scoring on a putback and senior wing Nick Felhaber and Gray drilling 3-pointers to bring the Bishops within 84-78 with 1:01 to go, but St. Olaf put the game away at the free throw line, with Pahl going 4-for-4 and Nielsen hitting 2 shots during the final minute of play.

Simpson went 10-for-13 from the field on the way to a team-high 25 points, matching his career best.  He also finished with 11 rebounds to post his fifth double-double in his last 6 games, and shared the team lead with 3 assists.

Gray kicked in 19 points, Axelrod scored 14 points and shared the team lead with 3 assists, and Felhaber finished with 12 points, all from beyond the arc.

Aeikens led St. Olaf with 19 points.