No. 5 WashU Bests Wabash in Monday Evening Clash
The No. 5 Washington University in St. Louis men's basketball team defeated Wabash 82-74 in a Monday evening matchup in the Field House. The Bears are now 4-0 on the year.
WashU was led by sophomore Connor May with 21 points, nine rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals. Junior Ryan Cohen netted 16 points in the win, hitting a new career high.
First-year Josh Kim scored a career-high 12 points, and sophomore Anthony Przybilla scored 11 points, pulled down nine boards, and recorded four assists.
The Bears opened the game on an 11-0 run, starting with a 3-pointer from May, followed by a jumper and a free throw from Will Grudzinski. Cohen netted a layup, Grudzinski hit another free throw, and Kim laid one in to close out the run.
The Little Giants scored the next five points and ultimately closed it to five points, 15-10 after two free throws from Colton Stowers.
With the Bears up eight points, 20-12 with 11:19 on the clock, Wabash put in back-to-back buckets to cut it to four points, 20-16, midway through the first half. An and-one play from Cohen extended the Bears' lead back to seven, 27-20.
With a slight 33-27 lead with 3:29 remaining in the first half, Cohen drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to quickly make it a double-digit lead for the Bears, 39-27.
Wabash brought it down to seven points with less than two minutes remaining, but May scored five straight points to send the Bears into the half with a 44-32 lead.
Przybilla laid one in to start the second half, putting WashU ahead 46-32.
The Bears consistently maintained a double-digit lead up to 12 points. With 12:14 on the clock, Wabash hit a 3-pointer and followed with a pair of free throws, cutting the lead to seven points, 60-53.
A 3-pointer from Cohen midway through the half extended the lead back to double figures, 63-53. After a bucket from the Little Giants, Przybilla laid one in and junior Jake Davis slammed one home for a 12-point, 67-55 lead at the 9:00 mark.
Three straight free throws from Wabash made it a 67-60 game, and those seven points would be as close as the Little Giants would come. Davis had an and-one play to push the Bears back into double digits at 7:20, which the Bears held for nearly four minutes when a Nate Matelic layup made it an eight-point, 76-68 game.
After exchanging baskets as the clock ticked down, Przybilla scored the final points for the Bears with a pair of free throws at the 1:21 mark. Wabash's Luke Ellspermann hit a buzzer-beater hail Mary shot, ending the game at 82-74.
The Bears shot 31-for-63 from the floor (49.2%) and 7-for-17 (41.2%) from 3-point range. WashU out-rebounded Wabash 42-33 and had 26 points from the bench.