Wilmington Sinks DC Men at the Buzzer

CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. – Defiance College drew even at 57-57 on an Anthony Pettaway bucket with 25 seconds remaining, but Wilmington’s Zach Broermann hit a runner with one second to play to steal the 59-57 victory for the Quakers.

Pettaway led three Yellow Jackets in double figures in the scoring column with a game-high 18 and added nine rebounds. Anthony Jackson connected on three-of-eight attempts from beyond the arc to finish with 14 points and C.J. Johnson added 12 points and three assists.

Nick Sales managed only three points, but filled up the stat sheet with nine rebounds, four assists and a pair of blocks, while Nate Helton and Bryan Post rounded out the scoring for DC with five points each.

Defiance opened strong, grabbing a quick 8-4 lead after a trey from Jackson and eventually extending the margin to 10 at 18-8 midway through the opening half. Wilmington stormed back with a 7-0 spurt over the next two minutes to trim the gap to just three points and neither side would lead by more than six points the rest of the way.

The Quakers closed the half on a 21-12 rally to cut DC’s lead to a single point, 30-29, at the half, but DC opened the second with a three from Jackson and a layup from Johnson to take the 35-29 advantage.

Defiance stayed on top until Fred Harrison’s three-point shot with 12:39 showing on the clock put Wilmington up 40-38 and gave the Quakers their first lead since holding a 4-3 edge over the Jackets.

DC stayed close over the next several minutes before getting back in front at 53-52 on a Pettaway layup in the paint with 3:56 to play. Another hoop from Pettaway made it 55-52 with 1:44 left, but WC’s Scott Walters knotted the scoring at 55-55 with a long-range dagger just 14 ticks later.

That set the stage for the thrilling final 90 seconds and Wilmington’s last-second victory. Broermann was the hero, as he picked up a steal and assisted a Harrison layup on the other end to give his squad the two-point edge.

A third-straight DC basket from Pettaway tied it at 57-57, but Broermann closed the game by beating the buzzer with a game-winning runner to spoil DC’s season opener.

Defiance (0-1) will be back in action on Saturday against Thomas More. Defiance bounced the Saints, 76-48, in last year’s Purple and Gold Tournament on Nov. 17, 2007. The Jackets dominated the paint in that matchup, with Pettaway and Sales combining for 29 points on nine-of-15 shooting from the floor.