Early on, both offenses were on fire. Wooster (18-1, 10-0 NCAC) connected on 11 of its first 12 field goals (.917), with James Cooper accounting for 11 points during the first seven minutes. Earlham (9-10, 6-4 NCAC), minus three turnovers, was matching its hosts each possession, with a 7-of-9 effort from the field (.778), including 10 points from Brandon Miller, all of which made it a 23-19 Scot lead.
Wooster continued to shoot very well and tightened up its defense, leading to an 11-1 run and a 14-point lead (34-20). It remained an 11-to-16-point margin right up to halftime, as the Scots entered the break with a 47-33 advantage.
It was still a 14-point game (53-39) four minutes into the second half, but then Wooster strung together a game-clinching 17-4 run. Brandon Johnson got loose for eight points during that stretch, including two 3-pointers.
Tim Vandervaart was all over the place for the Scots, finishing with squad-highs of 26 points, coming on 10-of-13 field goals and 6-of-6 free throws, 12 rebounds, six assists, and four steals. Cooper and Johnson wound up with 20 and 15 points, respectively, as the two guards combined to make 14-of-16 shots from the floor.
Miller was a one-man wrecking crew for the Quakers, scoring more than half of his team’s points as he poured in 32 on 13-of-19 field goals, to go with three rebounds and four steals.
As a team, Wooster, after its 20-of-27 performance in the first half (.741), ended up at a .629 clip from the floor (39-of-62), including 8-of-14 3-pointers (.571). Defensively, the Scots held Earlham to just 15-of-38 field-goal shooting (.395) following its early spurt, and forced 18 turnovers for the game.
Next, Wooster hosts Allegheny College (7-10, 3-6 NCAC) on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.