• Box Score

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 9) – The California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team lost to Shepherd, 83-77, in its season-opening game Saturday evening at the Butcher Center in the Clarion Hotel Classic.

The Vulcans (0-1) had four players score in double-figures against the Rams (1-0), including a game-high 21 from junior Arman Marks (Louisville, Ky./Eastern), who was making his Cal U debut. Junior Alonzo Murphy (Pittsburgh, Pa./Imani Christian Academy), also making his Cal U debut, added 19 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while senior Chris Williams (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) and junior Tynell Fortune (Harlem, N.Y./Pocono Mountain West (Pa.)) posted 13 and 12 points, respectively.

Shepherd held the lead for the first 12 minutes of the game, never more than five points, until a fast-break lay-up by Fortune off of a missed Shepherd three-point attempt gave Cal U its first lead of the game at 24-23 with 7:17 left in the first half. The Vulcans extended the lead to six, 33-27, on a three-pointer by sophomore Jake Jacubec (Struthers, Ohio/Struthers) with 3:35 left in the first half. Shepherd rallied back with a 9-0 run to enter halftime with a 36-33 lead.

Shepherd out-scored Cal U 20-10 in the first nine minutes of the second half to extend its lead to 56-43 with 11:14 left in the game. The Vulcans did little to chip away at the deficit, as the Rams extended their lead to 17 points, 75-58, with 4:07 remaining in the contest. Cal U came storming back in the next three minutes, going on a 17-4 run, capped off by a lay-up by Marks with 14 seconds left in the game to make the score 79-75. Shepherd made four-consecutive free-throws in the final 10 seconds to seal the Vulcans fate.

Cal U finished the game shooting 50 percent (30-for-60) from the field and 35 percent (7-for-20) from beyond the arc, both better than Shepherd, but were out-rebounded 36-31 and shot 10-of-17 (58 percent) from the free-throw line in the loss. The Rams converted 19-of-24 (79 percent) attempts from the charity stripe.

The Vulcans will conclude play in the Clarion Hotel Classic tomorrow, Sunday, Nov. 10, when they take on Charleston (W.Va.). Tip for the game is set for 2 p.m.