CALIFORNIA (Jan. 6) – Seniors
Khalil Jabbie (Alexandria, Va./Edison) and
Richard Smith (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East) combined for 34 points on Wednesday night, as the Vulcans suffered an 81-67 loss to No. 22 West Chester at the Convocation Center in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play.
With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team drops to 5-9 this season behind a 3-6 mark in league action. Meanwhile, the Golden Rams improve to 12-1 overall – the most wins in the PSAC – and 8-1 in PSAC play.
Jabbie led the team with 19 points on six-of-eight shooting from the floor and six-of-seven from the free-throw line. He also collected five rebounds and four assists while playing 33 minutes on Wednesday. Jabbie is now averaging 12.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists over the last six games.
Smith finished with 15 points on five-of-nine from the floor and also totaled eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals in the loss. Sophomore
Nick Miller (Industry, Pa./Western Beaver) added 10 points while playing just 12 minutes off the bench, while classmate
Luka Andjusic (Belgrade, Serbia/Borislav Petrov Braca) scored nine points behind three-of-six from beyond the arc.
The Golden Rams posted a 9-3 run early in the game to take a 12-8 lead with 13:43 left in the first half. Cal U answered with six of the next eight points to tie the game at 14-14 on a jumper by Jabbie at the 10:14-mark. West Chester countered with a 15-2 rally, including a span of 12-unanswered points, to take its largest lead of the first half at 29-16 with 1:55 left before the break. The Vulcans then cut the deficit to single digits on a three-pointer by Andjusic before the Golden Rams took a 31-21 lead at halftime.
Early in the second half, West Chester stretched the lead to 48-27 with 15:35 left to play behind a 17-4 run over nearly four minutes. Following a pair of free-throws by the Vulcans, the teams traded points for nearly six minutes with the Golden Rams taking their largest lead of the game at 61-37 with 9:18 remaining. Cal U later mounted a 12-5 rally in a span of just over three minutes to cut the deficit to 72-56 on a layup by Jabbie at the 3:24-mark before eventually trimming the score to a 14-point deficit in the final minute.
The Vulcans finished the game shooting 34.4 percent (21-of-61) from the field and 82.6 percent (19-of-23) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, the Golden Rams shot at a 46.8 clip (29-of-62) from the floor behind 13-of-30 from beyond the arc (43.3 percent). West Chester held a 43-36 rebounding advantage, while both teams scored 12 second-chance points.
Senior Mike Wilson led the Golden Rams with 15 points off the bench behind four-of-eight from beyond the arc. Junior Thomas White registered a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds (seven offensive) in the win, while freshman Matt Penecale finished with 10 points, five rebounds and 11 assists.
The Vulcans return to PSAC West play on Saturday, Jan. 9, when they host Seton Hill at 5 p.m.
