WESTERVILLE, Ohio (Dec. 29) – The Waynesburg University men's basketball team traveled to Otterbein University on Thursday for its first game at the Smokey Ballenger Classic. The Yellow Jackets dropped a 74-59 final score to Hiram.
 
Waynesburg (4-6) trailed by as many as 13 points (24-11) in the first half. However, a 17-6 end to the opening period pulled the Yellow Jackets to within two points when halftime came around. The Jackets scored the final 10 points of the half to cruise into the locker room with just a 30-28 deficit. Six different players scored during the surge.
 
Unfortunately, the break seemed to affect Waynesburg's momentum in a major way. Hiram (4-6) outscored the Jackets 22-8 over the first 7:39 of period number two to grab a 52-36 advantage.
 
The Orange and Black didn't give up, however, and was able to pull back to within four points by outscoring the Terriers 21-9 over six minutes of second-period play. That was as close as Waynesburg came to pulling off the comeback, as Hiram finished the game by scoring 13 of the final 15 points.
 
Freshman Nick Valentic came off the bench to pace Waynesburg with 11 points. Junior Jon Knab chipped in 10 points, while senior Christian Koroly helped out with nine.
 
Waynesburg finishes its stay at the event tomorrow by facing the host Cardinals. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.