Sophomore Breckman Oakley's free throws with 2.1 seconds remaining put The College of Wooster men's basketball team ahead, as the Fighting Scots overcame a seven-point deficit in the final 2:31 to beat Kenyon College 62-61 on Wednesday evening at Tomsich Arena.

Will McDonald hit the 20-point threshold with a jumper to give Kenyon a 59-52 lead before Wooster's closing surge. The Owls did not score after Marius Mazeika's layup rolled around the rim and in with 1:16 remaining. Oakley's drive pulled the Scots within a possession, forcing a must-stop defensive stand in the final minute. The Scots did just that, as Oakley came away with a steal before leading senior Isaac Roeder to the rim in transition. Roeder's layup made it a one-point game with about 16 seconds remaining.

Wooster quickly fouled twice, as it had a foul to give, sending Langston Foster to the line with 9.2 seconds left. The Owls' 66.7 percent free throw shooter missed the front end of a one-and-one, giving Wooster an opportunity to go for two instead of three. Oakley was fouled on the drive prior to his winning free throws. Kenyon's winning halfcourt heave at the buzzer was short.

Oakley's free throws marked just the second time Wooster had the lead on the night. The Scots worked their way out of a 12-0 hole to lead 19-18 when sophomore Si Kielian hit the back end of a pair of three throws with 5:42 to play in the first half. Kenyon claimed the lead right back, as nobody stopped the ball on Nick Nelson's drive to the rim three possessions removed from Kielian's trip to the charity stripe.

Wooster tied the score four times in the second half, first at 39 when Roeder found Oakley open for a 3-pointer. Next, a second-chance Oakley triple knotted the score at 42. Kenyon answered right back, but a mid-range floater from Kielan dropped, deadlocking the score at 44. The teams were again tied, this time at 47, when junior Quincy Jones knocked down a pair of three throws with 8:48 remaining.

Cox-Holloway's 20 points led Wooster. Roeder followed with 14 points and Oakley added 10 points and three steals. First-year Tommy Vaughn Jr. secured a team-high nine rebounds to go with a team-leading four assists.

McDonald, who entered the game averaging 4.6 points per game, matched Cox-Holloway for high honors in the scoring column at 20. Mazeika had a fine game with 15 points and five rebounds.

Both teams struggled mightily when it came to finding consistent offensive rhythm, as the two squads both shot under 40 percent. In fact, they posted nearly identical marks, as Wooster's 38.6 percent shooting percent (22-of-57) was a shade better than Kenyon's 37.5 percent mark (21-of-56). Wooster went 13-of-18 at the line, compared to a 12-of-18 mark for Kenyon.

The win was crucial for Wooster, as it moved into a tie with Kenyon for sixth place in the North Coast Athletic Conference with four games remaining. Only six teams make the NCAC Tournament now, and a Wooster loss would have handed Kenyon a two-game lead, outright control of the head-to-head tiebreaker in the event of a two-team tie for seeding, and handed the Owls their first regular-season sweep of the Scots since the 1993-94 season.

Wooster is now 7-14, 4-8 NCAC on the year. Kenyon is 10-11, 4-8 NCAC.

Next, Wooster heads to Wabash College (13-7, 7-4 NCAC) for a 2 p.m. game on Saturday, Feb. 7.