Tigers net another key NCAC win against Hiram

HIRAM, Ohio--The DePauw men's basketball team won its fourth-straight contest Saturday afternoon, defeating Hiram 75-61, in North Coast Athletic Conference action.

The Tigers improved to 15-6 on the year and 8-6 in league play, while the Terriers dropped to 9-12 overall and 3-11 in the NCAC.

It was the duo of Michael Onuorah and Bob Dillon who paced DePauw early, accounting for the Tigers' opening nine points. Up 9-2, DePauw would extend its lead by as much as 13 before entering the locker room with a 42-31 lead.

Onuorah scored the Tigers' final six points of the half on a trio of layups. He led all scorers with 14 first-half points on 5-of-9 shooting and a 4-for-5 mark from the charity stripe. DePauw shot 51.6 percent (16-of-31) from the floor and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from the free-throw line.

Hiram shot a respectable 47.8 percent (11-of-23) from the floor, but committed seven turnovers, hindering their ability to gain any momentum.

In the second half, Luke Lattner netted an early and-one layup to put the Tigers up 12. Dillon continued to lead DePauw, going three-for-three from the floor, netting nine points to lead all scorers in the second-half.

Clint Cunningham hit a pair of free-throws with 9:51, giving the Tigers their largest lead at 62-41. DePauw maintained a double-digit lead.

on their way to a 14-point victory.

Dillon and Onuorah each had a game-high 18 points, going a combined 13-for-23 from the floor. Dillon added five assists, while Onuorah grabbed five boards. Connor Rich, Lattner and Cunningham each totaled eight points in the victory.

DePauw shot 48.2 percent (27-of-56) from the floor, including a 6-of-13 (46.2%) mark from three and a 15-of-19 (78.9%) clip from the charity stripe. The Tigers held a slight rebounding advantage, edging Hiram 30-29.

Hiram was led by J.J. Woodson with 13 points and Kelvin Jones with 12. The Terriers went 23-of-50 (46%) from the floor and 6-of-15 (40%) from three.

The Tigers return to Neal Fieldhouse on Wednesday, February 11, when they host Wittenberg starting at 8:00 p.m. DePauw currently sits fourth in the tightly contested NCAC standings.