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CALIFORNIA (Dec. 17) – The California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team led by as many as 19 points on Tuesday night before earning a 69-64 win over West Chester in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play at the Convocation Center.

With their second-straight victory, the Vulcans improve to 3-6 overall with all three wins coming at home. Meanwhile, the Golden Rams fall to 6-3 this year after being the preseason favorite in the PSAC East poll.

Junior guard Tynell Fortune (Harlem, N.Y./Pocono Mountain West (Pa.)) scored a game-high 19 points while playing only 21 minutes due to foul trouble. He shot four-of-six from the floor with three three-pointers and made eight-of-eight from the free-throw line on Tuesday. Fortune is averaging 15.8 points per game over the last five games.

Sophomore Jake Jacubec (Struthers, Ohio/Struthers) posted 14 points and four assists, while freshman Drew Cook (Beaver Falls, Pa./Beaver Falls) added 11 points off the bench. Junior forward Alonzo Murphy (Pittsburgh, Pa./Imani Christian Academy) finished with eight points and seven rebounds before fouling out and senior Chris Williams (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) collected seven points and five rebounds in the win.

The Vulcans kept the Golden Rams scoreless for the opening five-plus minutes of the game and took a 13-5 lead following a pair of three-pointers with 11:20 left before halftime. The teams traded points for the next several minutes with West Chester trimming the deficit to 24-18 with 2:47 remaining in the first half. Cal U closed play in the opening half on a 12-3 run to stretch its lead to 36-21 at the break.

West Chester made the opening basket of the second half before Cal U scored seven-straight points to take its largest lead of the game at 43-24 following a Cook three-pointer with 15:48 remaining. The Golden Rams chipped away at the lead with eight-unanswered points and trailed 47-37 with 8:09 left to play. The Vulcans later snapped a five-minute drought without a field-goal on a jumper by Murphy to take a 57-44 lead with 5:45 remaining.

The Golden Rams countered with a 17-7 run over nearly four minutes to cut the deficit to 64-61 with 1:54 left to play. Both teams were unable to score for over a minute before Cal U sealed the victory by making five-of-six free-throws in the final minute, including a pair by Cook while leading by three points with 24 seconds remaining.

The Vulcans finished the game shooting 42.2 percent (19-of-45) from the floor and 45.0 percent from beyond the arc. In comparison, the Golden Rams made 32.9 percent (23-of-70) from the field and 29.4 percent (5-of-17) from long range. The teams combined for a whopping 40 fouls in the second half and Cal U tied a season high with 22 free-throws made in the game, including 20 after halftime.

West Chester junior Cory Blake recorded a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds in the losing effort. Sophomore Eddie Mitchell finished with 15 points, while senior Shannon Given tallied eight assists.

The Vulcans continue league crossover action tomorrow, Wednesday, Dec. 18, when they host Cheyney at 7:30 p.m.