PHILIPPI, W.Va. - Tiffin men's basketball outscored Alderson Broaddus 16-6 over the final four minutes of play on Thursday night as they went on to win 81-70.
The win avenges a one-point loss to the Battlers earlier this season at home, and will make Alderson Broaddus wait until the final game of the season to find out if they make the GMAC postseason.
Joshua Williams led all scorers with 28 points on 9-15 shooting from the field and a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line. The junior has now made 97 free throws this season, jumping into a tie for 10th in the TU record books for single-season makes. He is also seventh on the top-10 list for single-season free throw attempts with 151. Williams also scored 24 in the first meeting between the teams in January, averaging 26 points in the two meetings between the Dragons and Battlers.
Shane Waldon recorded another double-double with 19 points and 12 boards, while Thomas Hickman continued his strong late-season play with 17 points off the bench. Hunter Schmalz also added a career-high seven boards in the win.
The Dragons were just 4-16 from deep, but made up for it by getting to the charity stripe 24 times and converting on 19 for a rate of nearly 80%. TU also held AB to just 4-24 (16.7%) from beyond the arc in the game. With those 16 three-point attempts, the Dragons set a record for the most attempts in a single season in TU history with 635 and counting, and are also second all-time in made triples as a team, 20 shy of the record of 234.
Tiffin outrebounded Alderson Broaddus 45-38 and scored 21 points on second chance opportunities compared to 14 for the Battlers.
Williams got the scoring started with a pull-up jumper from the top of the key, and the Dragons would go on to take a 16-9 lead on a Hickman layup at the 13:04 mark of the opening half. Alderson Broaddus responded with ten unanswered points, though, taking a three-point lead four minutes later.
The Battlers led for most of the rest of the half, including by eight at one point, but Tiffin was able to regain the lead on a Williams jumper with 1:39 to play that made it 34-33 in favor of the visitors.
AB's Mike Davis quickly put the Battlers back on top with a tip-in, but Williams came back the other way with a triple that sent the Dragons into the break with a 37-35 advantage.
The second-half was full of back-and-forth action, as neither team led by more than five until the Dragons went on a late run with less than five minutes on the clock.
Tied at 64 with 4:32 to play, Williams got the run started with two free throws and a jumper. Waldon followed with a layup and then Williams drained a pull-up three in transition to make it nine unanswered and put Tiffin up 73-64 with 2:18 remaining.
That run proved to be the difference in the game, as the Dragons only shot free throws the rest of the way and made eight of 12 down the stretch to hold on for the 11-point win.
Tiffin will look to close out the 2018-19 season with back-to-back wins as they travel to Davis & Elkins on Saturday, a team they beat by one point in a thriller at home back on Jan. 17.