WOOSTER, Ohio – Doug Thorpe delivered a career performance to lead nationally-ranked No. 8 Wooster to a 92-68 victory over Allegheny at rowdy Timken Gymnasium, Wednesday night. The Fighting Scots weathered a challenge by the Gators with an outstanding second half while extending their unbeaten streak in conference play to seven games.
After keeping pace with the Fighting Scots through the first 20 minutes, Allegheny was unable to carry the momentum into the second half. The Gators protected the ball extremely well in the first half, but turnovers in the second frame proved costly as Wooster's advantage on the glass and the scoreboard continued to swell.
Allegheny shot 49% from the field, but Wooster was even better, converting half of its three-point looks (9-of-18) while shooting 51% for the game. The teams were statistically even, with one glaring exception. Powering to a 43-23 advantage on the boards, the Fighting Scots were able to manufacture 25 second-chance points.
Allegheny came ready to give the nationally-ranked Scots all they could handle, although it was clear from the out-set that Wooster brought its best effort as well. The teams traded baskets throughout the early going, and even though Wooster pulled ahead by five on several occasions, the Gators quickly tightened the gap.
Trailing for the first nine minutes of the game, junior forward Marco Corona corralled a rare offensive board and put back the miss to give Allegheny its only lead of the game at 19-18. A 12-4 run by Wooster over the next five minutes put the Fighting Scots firmly back in control, while Wooster continued to assert a significant advantage on the glass.
Except for a brief stretch toward the end of the half, Allegheny was able to match the Scots' frenetic offensive pace. Chris Milon fueled the effort with 10 points, while Ryan Stanko and Josh Valentic each converted a pair of three's. Thorpe, who was spectacular all evening canned a pair of free throws just before the final whistle as Wooster led, 45-37, at the break.
Opening the second half with another 12-4 run, Wooster never really looked back despite a good shooting performance by the Blue and Gold.
Valentic scored a season-high 19 points, knocking down 5-of-8 from beyond the arc en route to his best game donning an Allegheny jersey. Milon finished the night 8-of-10 from the floor while closing with a career-high 18. Stanko, who was aggressive on offense during the first half, cooled in the second and finished with a dozen.
The Fighting Scots had four players in double figures, led by Thorpe's 24. Josh Claytor added 14 points and eight rebounds, with Jake Mays chipping in 10 and nine.
Rebounding is proving to be the key for the Gators this season as they continue their emergence against a highly-competitive league slate. Allegheny is 8-0 in games which it out-rebounds its opponent, and 0-8 when it loses the rebounding battle.