OBERLIN, Ohio – Danny Enright converted a lay-up just before the final buzzer and Oberlin escaped a late rally by Allegheny en route to a 63-62 victory at Phillips Gym on Wednesday night.

Trailing 59-51 with just over three minutes left in regulation, Allegheny jumped back into contention with production at the charity stripe, while a three by freshman David DiBernardi put the Gators in front by one with 24 seconds left on the clock. Oberlin's first attempt to take back the lead failed as sophomore forward Bobby Theiss blocked a potential game-winner by Josh Merritt out of bounds. The Yeomen maintained possession with 10 seconds to go, and as the final seconds ticked off the clock, Andrew Fox dished the ball to a cutting Enright, who laid in the game-winning score.

James Ness paced the Gators with a game-high 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Theiss authored a solid all-around effort, scoring a season-best nine points, while adding three offensive rebounds, three blocks, and a pair of steals. Devone McLeod also had nine points, DiBernardi chipped in eight, and D'Andre Corbin and Gabe Seidman each finished with seven.

Allegheny finished the game 16-of-19 from the free-throw line and won the rebounding battle (31-30), but seven threes by the Yeomen proved to be the difference this time around. Fox scored 15 points and added 11 boards to lead the home squad, while Merritt added 12, and Simpson scored 11. Enright added 10 on 5-of-6 shooting including the game's decisive basket.     

Allegheny's rookie guard tandem delivered a burst of offense for the Gators at the start of the game. After Seidman and McLeod fueled a 5-0 lead following the opening tip, a three by Seidman triggered a response by fellow first-year DiBernardi, who also sank a pair of shots from the outside to keep the Gators ahead, 15-10.  

Oberlin's post offense kept it tight, and after pounding the interior with 10 straight points, Emmanuel Lewis nailed a three to give the Yeomen their first lead at 19-17 with 10 minutes left in the half. Merritt started to heat up for the Oberlin attack, but Theiss took over for the Gators down the stretch, scoring seven straights points including a three-point play to keep pace with the Yeomen.

Tied with Oberlin in the last two minutes of the period, Allegheny turned the ball over on its last three possessions and went to the locker room down, 32-30.

Seidman hit a jumper at the start of the second half, but the Yeomen struck back with five straight points. Ness scored nine straight points for the Gators to carry the offensive load early in the frame, but Oberlin maintained its slim advantage with a series of jumpers, including a three by Geoff Simpson that negated a surge in momentum by the Blue and Gold.

Although the team finished with just 13 turnovers, Allegheny was plagued by its inability to protect the basketball during key stretches of the tilt. Losing the ball on three straight possessions, the Yeomen converted the added opportunities in pushing its lead to a game-high 49-41 with 11:50 left in regulation. And while the Gators responded as McLeod and Corbin delivered game-tightening buckets, the Yeomen's success from beyond the arc kept the comeback bid at bay until the last few minutes of action.