Chicago, Ill., February 25, 2012 – Senior Dylan Richter scored a team-high 14 points and sophomores Alan Aboona and Chris Klimek added 13 points each as the No. 24 ranked Washington University in St. Louis men's basketball team concluded regular season play with a 73-60 win at the University of Chicago on Saturday afternoon in the Windy City.
Senior Alex Toth added 11 points in the win, while junior Robert Burnett chipped in with nine points. Richter added 10 rebounds and three assists for the Bears as he recorded the second double-double of his career. Aboona also filled up the stat sheet with seven rebounds and seven assists.
Washington University (19-6, 11-3 UAA) trailed 19-18 midway through the first half, but a 12-0 run by the Bears gave them a 30-19 lead. Washington U. scored 11 of the 12 points in the paint during the decisive run.
The Bears took their largest lead of the half at 38-24 with 32 seconds remaining after back-to-back buckets by Toth, but Michael Sustarsic picked up a loose ball and beat the first half buzzer with a three-pointer to trim WUSTL's halftime lead to 38-27.
Toth had nine points to lead Washington U. in the first half, while Richter and Aboona added seven points apiece. The Bears shot 46.9 percent (15-32) from the field in the first half and had 13 assists. Washington U. also outscored Chicago 22-4 in the paint.
A 10-4 run to open the second half extended Washington U.'s advantage to 48-31. A put-back and a three-pointer by Richter made it 55-37 with 13:30 to play.
Tom Williams led Chicago with 14 points, while Matt Johnson and Matt McKenzie added 11 points each. Johnson entered the day averaging a UAA-best 20.6 points per game, and was limited to 5-of-13 shooting by sophomore Tim Cooney. Chicago (14-11, 7-7 UAA) shot just 32.3 percent (22-61), and hit just 7-of-29 from three-point range.
The 2012 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball selection show will be aired on www.ncaa.com, on Monday, Feb. 26, at 11 a.m. Fans will have the opportunity to watch the selection show in the Fun Room at the Danforth University Center (DUC). Washington University won the University Athletic Association (UAA) championship and received an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.
Bear Notebook: Washington U. is ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Midwest Region rankings … The Bears received a technical foul in pre-game warm-ups for dunking … Washington University leads the all-time series with Chicago, 44-17 … WUSTL has outrebounded 20 of its 25 opponents this season and won 84 of its last 90 games when leading at halftime … Klimek has scored in double figures in 13 of the last 14 games … The Bears outscored Chicago 32-18 in the paint.