GAMBIER, Ohio – The Kenyon College men's basketball team trimmed a 15-point second-half deficit down to a one-possession game in the final seconds on Alumni Day, but a late pair of free throws helped Wabash College hold on for a 75-70 North Coast Athletic Conference win Saturday afternoon inside Tomsich Arena. The Owls moved to 8-8 overall and 2-5 in league play. The Litter Giants improve to 12-4 overall and 6-1 in NCAC play.
Kenyon shot an efficient 26-for-52 (50.0%) from the field and knocked down 10 triples, while Wabash finished 23-for-51 (45.1%) and 9-for-21 from beyond the arc. The difference came on the glass, where the Little Giants held a 33-26 rebounding advantage and turned nine offensive boards into key extra possessions, compared to just two offensive rebounds for the Owls.
Wabash weathered an early Kenyon strike, junior
Nick Valentino opened the scoring with a driving layup off a feed from sophomore
Marius Mazeika, then quickly responded with a pair of scoring opportunities. After Mazeika buried a three at 15:53 to cut the deficit to 8-5, the Little Giants responded by building separation with a steady stream of finishes at the rim and perimeter looks, stretching the margin to 33-13 on a Colton Stowers triple at the 4:09 mark. Kenyon found a bit of rhythm late but Wabash carried a 36-20 lead into halftime.
The visitors kept their foot on the gas early in the second half, pushing the advantage to 57-42 with 8:42 remaining. From there, Kenyon finally flipped the momentum with a run fueled by stops and shot-making. First-year
Jack Corrigan Conaty sparked the surge with back-to-back three-pointers to cut the gap to 57-48. Moments later, sophomore
Jackson Burke powered through contact for a layup and added a free throw, trimming it to 57-51 with 6:32 to play.
Kenyon stayed on the attack, Hungarian native
Bence Lendvay cashed in two fastbreak free throws and Graves finished inside to make it a three-point game (58-55). Wabash answered each time it needed to, most notably with a Deric Cannady three at 4:49 and a late basket near the two-minute mark before closing the final minute at the line.
Still, the Owls had one last push. After Wabash extended its lead to 73-65, Graves drilled a fastbreak triple with 12 seconds left to pull Kenyon within two (70-68). The Little Giants followed with two more free throws, and Mazeika slipped in for a final layup as the buzzer sounded to set the 75–70 final.
Mazeika led Kenyon with 16 points on 7-for-10 (70 percent) shooting, adding two steals and an assist in 34 minutes. Lendvay posted 13 points on 4-for-6 (66.7 percent) shooting, including 2-for-3 (66.7 percent) from three-point range, and went a perfect 3-for-3 at the stripe. Corrigan Conaty finished with 10 points on 4-for-7 (57.1 percent) and added a block and a steal. Graves added nine points and a game-high 10 rebounds, while Burke chipped in eight points, three rebounds, two assists, and three blocks.
Kenyon hits the road for its next matchup at Oberlin College on Wednesday, January 21, with tip-off set for 8 p.m.
