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Box Score
ERIE (Feb. 27) – Facing a “must-win” game in terms of qualifying for next week's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament, the Vulcans suffered an 88-74 loss in their final regular season game at Mercyhurst on Saturday afternoon in PSAC West action.
The California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team finishes the year with an 18-11 overall record and 6-8 league mark. Despite missing the post-season for the second-straight year, the Vulcans have now posted 24-consecutive winning seasons. Meanwhile, the Lakers earned a berth to the PSAC Tournament with an 8-6 divisional record and an 18-9 overall mark.
In his final college game, senior guard
Jerial Nixon (Lorain, Ohio/Admiral King/Lakeland C.C.) scored a team-high 19 points on 9-of-12 attempts from the floor. He also posted six rebounds and five assists against the Lakers. Nixon finished the season ranked third on the team in scoring at 11.9 points while also leading the team in assists (3.0 per game).
Junior guard
Joe Berenato (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) added 16 points off the bench behind three three-pointers and sophomore forward
Kelsey Williams (Sandusky, Ohio/Sandusky) finished with 15 points and a team-high seven rebounds (five offensive).
The Lakers opened the game making 10 of their first 12 shots to build a 23-12 lead after a three-point play by graduate student forward Christian Cornelius with 12:11 left in the first half. Cal U countered with nine-unanswered points over a stretch of nearly four minutes to trim the deficit to 23-21. The Vulcans then claimed their first lead of the game, 35-34, on a three-pointer by sophomore guard
Chad Tipton (Hanover, Pa./South Western) with 2:24 remaining before the break. The two teams traded baskets before Mercyhurst made a pair of free-throws in the final minute to take a 38-37 lead into halftime.
Mercyhurst seized momentum early in the second half, out-scoring Cal U 10-2 in the first three minutes to take a 48-39 advantage. After the Vulcans cut the deficit to five points, the Lakers mounted a 17-6 rally over four-plus minutes to take a 65-49 lead after a three-point play by sophomore forward Elliot Engelmann. Cal U rallied to trim the lead to nine points, 65-56, on a three-point play by junior forward
Rashawd Hatten (Clairton, Pa./Clairton) with 8:49 remaining. The Lakers quickly regained a double-digit lead and would lead by as many as 20 points several times in the last five-plus minutes of the game.
The Vulcans finished the game shooting a solid 47.5 percent (29-of-61) from the field and 36.8 percent (7-of-19) from three-point territory. In the win, the Lakers posted their best shooting performance of the season by making 56.6 percent (30-of-53) of their attempts. Mercyhurst also excelled from beyond the arc, shooting 50.0 percent (8-of-16). Both teams shot well from the free-throw line, but the Lakers held a significant difference in free-throws attempted (25-11).
Senior guard Nnamdi Nnadili led four Lakers scoring in double figures with 19 points, while both senior guard Jeremiah Wise and Cornelius finished with 15 points.
In the win, Mercyhurst finished with a 32-28 advantage on the glass and committed only 13 turnovers.
