ELKINS, W.Va. (Feb. 14) – Four players scored in double-figures, as the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team recorded a 75-71 non-conference victory at Davis & Elkins on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the Vulcans improve to 14-11 overall with a 7-5 mark on the road. Cal U is tied for fifth place, and holds a half-game lead ahead of seventh place, in the PSAC West standings with three league games left in the regular season. Meanwhile, D&E falls to 6-16 on the year.
Junior
Richard Smith (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East) scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting and added eight rebounds (four offensive), three steals and two assists. Classmate
Khalil Jabbie (Alexandria, Va./Edison) nearly finished with a double-double after totaling 16 points and eight assists. Freshman
Daniel Sapp (Streetsboro, Ohio/Streetsboro) added 14 points on five-of-eight shooting, including two-of-three from beyond the arc, and three rebounds, while senior
Arman Marks (Louisville, Ky./Eastern) scored 12 points off the bench.
The Vulcans opened the game on a 5-0 run before the Senators countered with a 9-0 rally to take a 9-5 lead following a three-pointer at the 14:51-mark. Cal U regained the lead after a pair of free-throws by Smith with 13:33 to play in the half. The Vulcans then went on a 13-0 run over a three-minute stretch that pushed the lead to 25-13 at the 7:29-mark. The Senators answered with an 11-2 run to pull within 27-24 with just over four minutes remaining in the half. The Vulcans then took a 34-28 lead on a layup by Smith before Cal U took a 34-30 halftime lead.
Early in the second half, the Senators pulled within 35-32 after a pair of free-throws. A three-pointer by Sapp stopped a nearly five-minute drought without a field goal drought for the Vulcans and extended the lead to 38-33 and started a 10-0 run that was bookended by a layup from Sapp at the 14:18-mark. The Senators then answered with an 18-6 run, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers, that pulled D&E to 54-51 with 7:26 remaining. After a jumper by Smith pushed the lead to five, D&E used a 13-7 run over nearly three minutes to take a 64-63 lead at the 3:14-mark. The Vulcans regained the lead after a pair of free-throws by Jabbie with 2:30 to play before Cal U took a 67-64 lead after a tip-in by Smith at the 1:53-mark. The Vulcans closed out the win by making all 10 of its free-throws over the final two-plus minutes of the game.
Cal U shot 45.3 percent (24-of-53), including a season-best 61.5 percent (8-of-13) from beyond the arc. The Vulcans out-rebounded the Senators by a 33-30 margin, including a 12-7 edge in offensive rebounds that led to 14 second-chance points by Cal U. Meanwhile, D&E connected on 50.0 percent (26-of-52) from the floor, including a 57.1 clip (8-of-14) from three-point range.
Sophomore Wesley Sprinkle scored a game-high 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting, highlighted by six-of-seven from beyond the arc, while adding six assists, three rebounds and two steals. Classmate Kevin Bracy-Davis added 18 points, four rebounds and four assists in the loss.
The Vulcans return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 18, when they host Seton Hill at 7:30 p.m.
