12th-ranked DePauw Overcomes First Half Deficit; Takes Early SCAC East Lead

BOX SCORE

January 6, 2008, Greencastle, Ind. - The 12th-ranked Tigers overcame a nine-point first half deficit to take a 35-33 halftime lead and extended it to a 75-63 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference victory over visiting Oglethorpe.

DePauw improved to 10-2 overall and 3-0 in the SCAC, while the Stormy Petrels, ranked 19th in the coaches' poll and 25th by D3hoops.com, dropped to 10-2 overall and 2-1 in the conference.

Oglethorpe led nearly the entire first half and took a 29-20 advantage on Anna Findley's three-pointer with 6:45 left. The Tigers battled back with nine straight as Sarah Merkel hit two free throws, Gretchen Haehl followed with a bucket and a three-point play and Jenna Fernandez added a jumper to knot the score at 29-29 with 4:23 left in the half.

Kalei Lowes' two free throws with six seconds left gave the Tigers a 35-33 lead into the break. The Stormy Petrels took a brief lead in the second half, but the Tigers gradually pulled away leading by as many as 19 at 66-47. Oglethorpe got as close as nine at 70-61, but Katie Mathews and Cassie Pruzin each added buckets to push the lead to 13.

Fernandez led four DePauw double-figure scorers with 17 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Lowes finished with 15, while Pruzin and Haehl each added 10.

Tina Grace paced the Stormy Petrels with 21, while Brittany Corbett added 17. Findley totaled a team-high eight rebounds in the loss.

DePauw shot just 35.6 percent from the floor, but held Oglethorpe to 39.3 percent and only 33.3 percent in the second half. The Tigers also failed to connect on a three-pointer for the first time since January 20, 2000 (a streak of 226 straight games), but they did set a school record with 33 free throws made.

DePauw travels to Rhodes on Friday, January 11, while Oglethorpe travels to Sewanee on January 12.