Springfield, OH- For the 30th time in program history, the Wittenberg University men's basketball team got their invitation to go dancing in March. On Monday afternoon, the Tigers found out they put together a strong enough resume to host the first round of games on their home floor for the 25th time in program history, where they would first go to battle against La Roche University in the first round of NCAA DIII action. No strangers to NCAA tournament action in recent years, the Tigers took down La Roche 83-66 to kickstart the 2020 NCAA Tournament campaign. This is Wittenberg's third consecutive first-round win, having defeated Emory (100-88) in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament from Guilford College, and taking down Misericordia (91-61) in the opening round of 2018 the last time they host NCAA action from Pam Evans Smith Arena. The Red and White finished with four players posting double figures on the night, led by Jake Bertemes, recording his sixth 20+ point effort of the season while serving up a team-high four assists with two rebounds. Connor Seipel tabbed is 18th double-double of the season, tallying 14 points and pulling down a team-high 11 rebounds. James Johnson felt right at home, converting on 5 of 8 from the floor, hitting on 2 of 4 from deep range, racking up 15 points and adding five rebounds to his total. Rashaad Ali-Shakir provided a spark off the bench for the Tigers, hitting on 4 of 7 attempts from the floor, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, scoring 13 points on the night. The Tigers put together another efficient shooting effort, knocking down 50 percent or better from the field for the 10th time this season. Wittenberg knocked down 28 of 56 from the floor and 12 of 24 from beyond the arc on the night.
Wittenberg now improves 54-29 overall in NCAA DIII Tournament games, with an impressive 19-4 overall mark in first-round games (not including 7 byes). Wittenberg had met La Roche just once previously in the NCAA Tournament, taking down the Redhawks 74-68 in 2011 from Marietta College.
Game Breakdown
It was a back and forth battle through the early going, as the Tigers were forced to overcome an early seven-point run put up by the Redhawks. Seipel converted the old-fashioned three-point play, bringing the score back to even at 18-18 with just under 12 minutes remaining in the first half. The Tigers to their first lead, coming off a Ridge Young three-pointer with 9:30 remaining on the clock. The Redhawks persisted trading buckets with the Tigers before Ali-Shakir stepped into a triple to knot the game back up at 24 all. Wittenberg would continue to extend their lead out to 35-29, coming off a three-pointer from Landon Martin.
In the second half, the Tigers opened up with a triple from Jordan Pumroy. Johnson earned a trip to the line where he sank his and-one opportunity to put the Tigers up 49-40 with 17:42 left to play in regulation. The Tigers jumped out to a 10-point lead coming off a layup from Seipel at 13:31. With 6:29 left to play, Johnson stretched the lead to 12 after a trip to the free-throw line extending the advantage to 68-56. The Red and White kept their foot on the gas as Bertemes pushed the Tigers ahead by 13, driving the length of the floor for the score. Bertemes would earn a trip to the charity stripe sinking both free-throws and stretching the lead out to 79-64 with 1:40 left to play.
From The Bench
Up Next
Wittenberg will return to action on Saturday, March 7 at 6:00 PM taking on the Susquehanna River Hawks in the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament Round of 32 from Pam Evans Smith Arena. This will be the third-ever meeting between the two times. The Tigers and River Hawks last squared off twice in the 1963-64 season, with Wittenberg coming out victorious in each meeting.