TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology shot 55% from the field and placed four players in double figures to defeat NCAA Division II Oakland City University 98-90 in its men's basketball season opener on Wednesday night.
Trey Wurtz led the balanced scoring attack with a career-high 20 points on 8-12 from the field. Craig McGee added 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists on 7-13 from the field.
The senior duo of Eli Combs and John Czarnecki added 13 points each. Combs was 6-7 from the field, while Czarnecki was 5-9 with five rebounds.
Other key contributors to the Rose-Hulman offense included Zach Callahan with nine points, four rebounds and three assists; Michael Lake with seven points and three assists; Samvit Ram with six points; and Jacob Back and Max Chaplin with five points each.
The Oakland City offense was led by Tyler Toopes with 27 points and eight rebounds. J.D. Hoover added 13 points as five members of the Mighty Oaks reached double figures in scoring.
Rose-Hulman hit seven three-pointers in the contest and outrebounded Oakland City 35-28. The Fightin' Engineers built an eight-point halftime lead and pushed the lead to a game-high 25 points at 86-61, before Oakland City rallied to within single digits in the final minute.
Rose-Hulman stands 1-0 on the season and returns to action on Friday at DePauw. Oakland City stands 0-3 and returns to action against Welch on Saturday.
