DePauw squads stay hot, sweep NCAC twinbill

GRANVILLE, Ohio – Ninth-ranked DePauw scored the game’s first 20 points and moved to 15-1 overall and 7-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference following a 62-48 win at Denison on Wednesday.

The Big Red dropped to 8-8 overall and 3-4 in the conference.

Seven different DePauw players scored in the opening quarter and the Tigers held Denison scoreless until 42 seconds, remained as the guests grabbed a 20-3 advantage after the opening 10 minutes.

After shooting 55 percent in the first, the Tigers connected on 57 percent in the second period while expanding the gap to 39-17 at the intermission.

DePauw gained its largest lead of the contest at 44-19 after Sydney Kopp made a pair of free throws with 6:07 remaining in the third. Denison outscored the Tigers 14-4 the remainder of the period to cut DePauw’s lead to 48-33.

Denison got as close at 10 at 56-46 with 1:35 left, but the Tigers hit six of eight free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

Maya Howard led DePauw with 20 points, while Melinda Franke posted her first collegiate double-double with 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.

DePauw shot 45.5 percent for the game to Denison’s 34.5 percent and the Tigers held a 43-27 advantage on the boards.

• DePauw 83, Denison 70 (men) — Behind shooting a season-high 65 percent from the floor, DePauw picked up its first true road win of the season on Wednesday.

The Tigers shot 33-of-51 from the floor and 10-of-18 (56 percent) from 3-point range in picking up their third consecutive win. They are now 6-8 overall and 2-5 in the NCAC, while Denison drops to 8-6 overall and 4-3 in conference play.

Three players reached double figures in scoring. David Vogel tied a career-high with 25 points, going 9-of-16 from the floor and 6-of-11 from beyond the arc. He also finished with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and one steal.

Jack VandeMerkt scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds off the bench. Josh Hall scored 14, shooting 5-of-6 from the foul line.

Denison, who trailed 37-22 at halftime, ended up shooting 38 percent (24-of-63) from the floor and 27 percent (8-of-30) from 3-point range.

The Tigers led 15-13 before closing the final 8:30 of the first half on a 22-9 run.

Trouble found DePauw to start the second half when Denison rolled out with an 8-2 run. However, DePauw then embarked on a 9-0 run that was highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers from Vogel.

Denison scored the next seven points to bring themselves within 11 at 48-37. The teams traded baskets for the next few minutes before DePauw went on a 10-0 run, again highlighted by two 3-pointers from Vogel, who scored eight points in that span, to give DePauw a 65-43 lead.

At one point, the Tigers led by as many as 28. Denison cut the deficit mightily late, and DePauw failed to extend its lead behind a 7-of-20 performance from the foul line.

DePauw outrebounded Denison 36-32. The Tigers outscored the Big Red in points off turnovers 22-16, points in the paint 38-28 and in bench points 28-11. Denison never led in the game.