Babe hit six three point baskets, also a career-high, scoring 26 total points, while Raftis was 7-of-9 from the field and 3-of-6 from the charity stripe, pouring in 17 points. Jimmy Savage (North Canton, Ohio/Hoover) also reached double figures in the game, hitting for 14 points, as the Gators (6-7, 2-3 North Coast Athletic Conference) also hit a season-high 15 three-point field goals in the loss.
The high scoring game had an innocuous start, as both squads’ offenses sputtered to start the contest. The Gators led 3-2 just two and a half minutes into the game, hitting just one of their first five shots while Wooster (12-2, 5-0 NCAC) put in one of their eight to start the contest.
The slow start quickly faded with the offenses hitting full throttle, as the visitors hit 19-of-25 shots over the remainder of the half, pushing to 52 first-half points. The Gator offense was equally impressive, hitting 17-of-27 shots to end the opening period, pouring in 47 points, a season high for the first half.
Allegheny led for the first 4:05 of the game, before the high-powered Wooster offense opened a lead as the teams traded baskets over the last 15 minutes of the half. The Scots led by as many as 11 in the first half, but could not put away the pesky Gators, as the Blue and Gold ended the half with an 8-3 run, cutting the deficit to five heading into the break.
The visitors scored the first four points of the second half, increasing their lead to 16 with under eight minutes to play, but the Gators fought back and made a game of it, closing to within six with 53 seconds on the clock. Six would be as close as the hosts would come, however, as the Scots scored the last four points of the game, all on free throws, as Brandon Johnson and Tom Port iced the game with a pair of free throws apiece.
Raftis pulled down a team-best seven rebounds, with Savage and Greg Richards (St. Albans, Vt./Shenendehowa) each grabbing six. Larry Sharp (North Wales, Pa./Germantown Academy) dished out a career-best seven assists, while Babe and Savage gave out six and five helpers, apiece.
Wooster was led by d3hoops.com preseason All-American James Cooper, who scored 25 points, 16 coming in the first half, while Andy Van Horn added 18. Tom Port and Brandon Johnson each scored 15, while Evan Will had a double-double with a dozen points and a dozen rebounds.
The Gators next take to the hardwood on Saturday, when the men’s and women’s team travels to Granville, Ohio, as the squads play a women’s/men’s double header against the Big Red of Denison University. The women tip-off at 2:00 p.m. with the men tipping off 30 minutes following the women’s final.