Springfield, Ohio, Dec. 30, 2015 – The No. 21-ranked Washington University in St. Louis men's basketball team shot a season-low 36.2 percent in a 72-61 loss at Wittenberg University Wednesday in the championship game of the Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic in Springfield, Ohio.
Wittenberg improved to 8-3 with the win, while WashU fell to 8-3.
The Bears hit just 5-of-24 (20.8 percent) from beyond the arc in the loss, and were outrebounded 45-33. Wittenberg also turned 13 offensive rebounds into an 18-6 advantage in second-chance points.
Sophomore forward Andrew Sanders recorded his second-straight double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while junior forward Clinton Hooks added 15 points. Senior guard Luke Silverman-Lloyd (12 points) and sophomore forward Matt Highsmith (10) also scored in double figures for the Bears.
WashU started slow hitting just two of its first 12 shots and trailed 16-4 in the opening 7:39. The Bears also missed on their first seven seven shots from three-point range. Hooks got the Bears back in the game with a pair of threes to trim the lead to 20-14 with 10:19 to play before half.
Wittenberg got the lead back to 11 (27-16) on a three-pointer by Garrett Dorfman, but an 8-3 run by the Bears trimmed the lead to six. WashU scored seven of the final nine points of the half to cut Wittenberg's lead to 34-31.
Hooks led the Bears with 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting as WashU shot 40 percent (12-30) from the field in the first half, and hit just 3-of-13 from three.
WashU opened the second half on an 11-4 run as Sanders had six points to give the Bears a 42-38 lead with 15:05 to play. The lead was short-lived as Wittenberg answered with seven-straight points to get the lead back for good.
The Tigers put the game out of reach with a 9-0 run as WashU went scoreless for almost five minutes.
Jaelin Williams led all scorers with 24 points and seven rebounds, while Cody Phillippi (13 points) and Dorfman (10) also scored in double figures for the Tigers. Wittenberg shot 40.4 percent (23-of-57) from the field and hit 19-of-25 free-throws.
WashU opens University Athletic Association (UAA) play Saturday, Jan. 9, at home against No. 22 University of Chicago. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. at the WU Field House.
BEAR NOTEBOOK: Wittenberg leads the all-time series 5-1, and the teams met for the first time since the 2004-05 season … The Bears have trailed or been tied at half in all three loses this season … WashU has also been outrebounded in all three losses … The double-double for Sanders was his fourth of the season … Wittenberg is NCAA Division III's all-time winningest team with 1,709 victories.