Granville, Ohio - DePauw shot a season-best 60.4 percent from the field and opened North Coast Athletic Conference play with an 82-60 win at Denison. The Tigers moved to 7-1 overall with its fifth-straight win, while the Big Red dropped to 3-4 following the NCAC opener for both schools.

DePauw trailed by as many as six in the opening half, but came back to grab a 37-36 halftime lead. With Denison leading, 40-39, early in the second half, the Tigers put together an 11-2 run to take a 50-42 lead.

The Big Red countered with a basket before DePauw rattled off 11 straight points to start a 15-2 stretch that pushed the lead to 65-46 with 10:15 remaining. Denison was within 17 once with the Tigers leading by as many as 26 the rest of the way. 

Grant Niego paced DePauw with 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds, while Ryan Jacobson poured in a career-high 14 points and Sam Jacobs matched one with 11. Grant Gohmann shared the rebounding lead with eight and, along with Jacobs, led the squad with four assists.

Darren Rubin paced Denison with 21 points with Ricky Radtke, Tyler Miller and Emmett Burnside each grabbing four boards. Radtke also led with four assists.

The Tigers shot 68.0 percent in the second half and held the Big Red to just 26.7 percent. DePauw outrebounded Denison, 34-22, and held a 46-24 edge in points in the paint.

DePauw returns to NCAC action on Saturday, Dec. 3, when it hosts Wooster at 1 p.m.