(WILMINGTON, Ohio) – The Wilmington College men's basketball team won a thrilling double-overtime contest on Senior Day over the Baldwin Wallace University Yellow Jackets this afternoon, 94-93. After Wilmington led by 10 at the half, the Yellow Jackets fought back to tie it at 77-77 at the end of regulation before the Quakers won it after 10 minutes of overtime action.
Wilmington finishes their regular season with an 11-14 overall record and 7-9 mark in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). They will play in the OAC tournament next week for the first time since 2021-22.
Before the game, the Quakers honored nine seniors in student assistant coach
Cyncere Watkins,
Kellen Baltazar,
Gabe Green,
Domenic Farley,
Zach McGuirt,
Mauricio Diaz,
Jed Smith,
Collin Barker, and
Zach King.
Wilmington jumped out to a 14-6 lead after the first seven minutes of action, being led by six
Elijah Cathey points and four
Kellen Baltazar points.
Their lead grew to nine before a 10-0 Yellow Jackets run gave them their first lead since the beginning of the contest at 21-20. Both teams traded buckets until the score sat at 27-27. The Quakers ended the half on a 14-4 flurry for a 41-31 lead. Six
Zach McGuirt points led the charge for Wilmington.
The Quakers went up by 11 early in the second half, but it didn't last as Baldwin Wallace started the half on a 17-6 run for a 48-47 lead with 13:46 remaining in regulation.
The Yellow Jackets found themselves up six at 71-65 with 5:50 to play. Wilmington stormed back for a 75-75 tie with just over a minute remaining. Two late
Ben Golan free throws were wiped out by a last second Baldwin Wallace layup to send the game to overtime at 77-77.
The Quakers roared out to a four point, 85-81 lead in overtime with 2:56 remaining, but the Yellow Jackets came right back to tie it at 85-85 and send it to a second overtime. Overtime number two was back and forth, with neither team having more than a two point lead. It came down to last second free throws where Baltazar made one of two to win the game 94-93.
Notables
- This is the Quakers first double overtime game of the season, and first win of the season in overtime after losing their previous two.
- Elijah Cathey led Wilmington in scoring with 16 points and was one of five players to score in double digits.
- Ben Golan scored 14, and Carson Miles had 12 while Gabe Green and Zach McGuirt both had 10.
- Both Elijah Cathey and Izaiah Cathey tied for the team high with six rebounds.
- Miles had a game high six assists and three blocks while Izaiah Cathey had five assists and two blocks.
What's Up Next
The Quakers travel to Ohio Northern University for the Quarterfinals of the upcoming OAC Tournament on Tuesday night at 7:00 P.M.
