Box Score Apparently the glass slipper was just a half size too small.
Denison's Cinderella run through this year's North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament came to a close on Saturday night 53-51 at the hands of The College of Wooster, but in typical Big Red fashion, they didn't go down without a fight.
Denison senior Larry Farmer's lob attempt with three seconds to play was off the mark and Brett Tiberi's 3-pointer as time expired fell just short, allowing the Fighting Scots to escape with a two-point win and the NCAC Tournament Championship.
Wooster utilized a 10-0 run over a span of 5:17 late in the second half, turning a seven-point deficit into a three-point lead with three minutes to play. Despite the scoring drought, Denison clawed back and a Dimonde Hale runner in the lane with 1:37 left trimmed the Wooster lead to two at 53-51. Neither team would score the rest of the way as each squad missed its final two shot attempts.
There was some stellar defense being played by both teams and that led to the uneven offensive output. Denison shot just 35 percent from the field and only hit two 3-pointers on 18 attempts. Wooster shot slightly better at 42 percent and was 4-of-15 from beyond the arc.
After setting the tone early with a 22-4 outburst in the semifinal win over Wittenberg, this time both teams started a little sluggish. It was the Scots who held an early lead and pieced together a 6-0 run late in the period as they pushed their lead out to nine at 28-19 with 2:14 to go. Denison would respond with a run of its own and the Big Red would close out the half on a 7-0 rally to trail by only two going into the intermission.
Denison would continue to be the aggressor in the second half when Alex Longi gave his team their first lead of the contest at 31-30 off a three-point play in the block. That would spark a burst by Denison and five minutes later they led 44-38 with 13:03 to play.
The two teams would trade baskets over the next four minutes, eventually leading to Wooster's game-changing 10-0 run.
Denison was led by Hale's 19 points in 36 minutes of action. The junior was 8-for-16 from the field while also adding two assists and one block. Farmer scored just four points on the night but led Denison on the glass with eight rebounds. He also had a team-high three blocked shots and three steals. With his final steal in the second half Farmer became Denison's career leader with 132.
Trailing Hale in points was Longi with 10 while Tiberi checked in with nine points.
Wooster was paced by Justin Hallowell and Josh Claytor who each scored 14 points. Claytor added a team-high eight rebounds and Hallowell, the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, finished with seven rebounds.
Denison's Farmer and Hale were both named to the all-tournament team. The Big Red's season comes to a close with a 14-14 record that saw DU win eight of its final 11 games. The College of Wooster will take its 24-4 record into the NCAA Division III Tournament next week. This was Denison's first-ever appearance in the NCAC Tournament Championship game. For Wooster, this marked its 14th NCAC Tournament title and the program's fourth consecutive win.
