Springfield, Ohio – Making history on the road, the Oberlin College men's basketball team took down Wittenberg in a thriller on Saturday night. Defeating the Tigers on their home court marks the first time Oberlin has won in Springfield since 1999. Additionally, this is the first time the Yeomen have beaten Wittenberg in the modern stat era.
 
JJ Gray led the charge with 19 points, six assists, five rebounds, and two steals. Following the junior was senior Zach Smith with 12 points. Rookie Sam Kamenko continued his storm of the boards with a team-best nine rebounds.
 
Rob Magner electrified Oberlin from the start, hitting a three-pointer on the first possession. Oberlin continued to rally after Liam Gray, Milun Micanovic, and Smith put the Yeomen up by eight points. Wittenberg punched back, but behind a 13-0 run that lasted eight minutes, Oberlin clinched a halftime lead of 32-21.
 
The Crimson and Gold maintained the pressure on the Tigers, holding a double-digit lead until after the half point of the second half. Wittenberg's Kyle Kenney hit a shot from behind the arch to cut the lead to four, eliminating Oberlin's strong lead. With one minute remaining, the Tigers scored back-to-back buckets to bring the game within one score. '
 
58-55, Oberlin on top, Wittenberg shot 2-2 from the charity stripe to bring the game to 58-57. The final 11 seconds saw Oberlin miss two free throws, and the Tigers launch a buzzer-beater from half court. Sailing just shy of the basket, Oberlin held on for the historic victory.
 
"This was a huge win for the whole program today. Wittenberg is a historic DIII program and they are so good at home." Head Coach Shiva Senthil continues, "We needed a team effort today to win and that's exactly what we got. This game was physical from the tip, but our guys were ready for battle. On to Kenyon."
 
The Crimson and Gold travel for just one more game in the regular season. Taking on their rival, Kenyon, the Yeomen tip off at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, February 18.
 
Keep up with the Crimson and Gold on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, and watch every home game on the Oberlin Sports Network online or on Roku, Apple TV, or Amazon Fire TV.