GAMBIER, Ohio (February 20, 2012) While the 2011-12 regular season featured some notable moments by the Kenyon College men's basketball team, none would be bigger than playing the spoiler in the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament. The Lords enter the postseason bracket as the No. 8 seed and will have the opportunity to shake up the field when they travel to Wittenberg University Tuesday night.
Kenyon (11-14, 5-11 NCAC) may have been the last team to qualify for a tournament spot, but in a way is already playoff tested. The Lords faced a win-or-go-home scenario on the road Saturday at Allegheny and produced a 67-64 victory. That pressure-packed experience can only help Kenyon once the ball goes in the air against the top-seeded Tigers at 7:30 p.m.
Wittenberg (20-5 overall), which is ranked 21st in Division III, wrapped up its 11th conference championship by posting a 14-2 record in NCAC play. The Tigers topped the standings thanks to stingy defense and strong rebounding. Wittenberg allowed the second-fewest points per game (61.1) of any NCAC team and also owned the third-best rebounding average (36.9). On the flip side, Kenyon allowed opponents to score 74.4 ppg while ranking fourth in the NCAC with 36.5 rebounds per game.
To the Lords' advantage, they boast two of the best dual threats in the conference. Sophomores Brian Lebowitz and Ikenna Nwadibia rank in the NCAC's top five for scoring and rebounding this season. Lebowitz is Kenyon's leading scorer with 15.7 ppg (4th in the NCAC) and is averaging 8.1 rpg (3rd). Nwadibia is just behind Lebowitz' scoring pace at 15.1 ppg (5th), but is the Lords' top rebounder with his 8.7 caroms per game (2nd).
The Tigers feature one of the league's top players in Clayton Black, who is averaging 14.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game as a senior. Wittenberg compliments Black with a deep and talented supporting cast. Josh McKee, Michael Cooper, Zack Leahay, and Alex Brant all average better than eight points per contest and are playing well at the right time. Each has led the Tigers in scoring at least once in the past five games to take some of the burden off of Black's shoulders.
With seven seniors on the roster, Wittenberg unquestionably has the edge on experience over a Kenyon squad that features only one senior and one junior. That will make Anthony Chun's leadership invaluable for the Lords on the postseason stage. Chun, a senior, averaged 11.1 points per game over the last half of the season.
Kenyon played the Tigers tough in their only match-up during the regular season on January 11th in Gambier. The Lords and Wittenberg fought through 13 ties and 14 lead changes before the Tigers prevailed, 71-63, behind a 38-point effort from Black.
Admission for Tuesday's game is $7 for adults and $5 for children and Kenyon students with a college identification card.
