ERIE, Pa. (Feb. 7) – The Vulcans featured four players in double-figures, but surrendered a .571 opponent field-goal percentage on Wednesday night in a 74-63 loss at Gannon in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.
With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball falls to 9-14 overall behind a 5-12 mark in league play. The Vulcans remain in seventh place in the divisional standing, but trail Mercyhurst by 3.5 games following a victory over Slippery Rock for the final playoff spot. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights improve to 15-8 this season with an 11-6 mark in conference action.
Senior
Cordell Smith (Cleveland, Ohio/Shaw) and junior
Jahmere Howze (Cleveland, Ohio/Warrensville Heights) both finished with a team-high 18 points in the contest. Smith shot 5-of-10 from beyond the arc and added two rebounds and four assists in 36 minutes. He now has made at least five three-pointers in four games this year. Howze converted 7-of-17 attempts and collected five rebounds in a game-high 38 minutes.
Senior
Robel Teckle (Washington, D.C./Friendship Collegiate Academy) tallied 11 points on five-of-seven from the floor and added six rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes, while classmate
Isaiah Lewis (Brooklyn, N.Y./Christ the King) totaled 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 29 minutes off the bench.
The Golden Knights jumped out to an early 8-3 lead with 16:19 left in the first half after shooting four-of-six from the floor. Cal U responded with four-straight points before tying the game at 10-10 on a three-pointer by Howze. Gannon went on a 12-2 run over a four-plus minute stretch after forcing Cal U into four turnovers. The Vulcans then countered with back-to-back three-pointers to trim the deficit to 24-20 with 7:48 remaining in the half. The Golden Knights quickly extended the lead back to double-figures before Smith answered with a pair of shots from beyond the arc to trail 30-26. Both teams traded baskets down the stretch, as Gannon took a 38-33 lead into halftime.
Gannon scored the initial bucket of the second half before Cal U registered five-unanswered points to cut the deficit to 40-38 with 18:46 remaining. The Golden Knights mounted an 8-0 rally to retake a double-digit advantage after the Vulcans went without a basket for over four minutes. Gannon extended its lead to as many as 17 points in the second half before Cal U posted seven-straight points to trim the deficit to 64-54 with 2:41 left. The Vulcans notched a late 5-0 run before the Golden Knights shot six-of-seven from the free-throw line to secure the victory, 74-63.
Cal U posted a .451 shooting percentage (23-of-51) and made 8-of-23 (34.8 percent) from three-point range. Meanwhile, Gannon converted 57.1 percent (32-of-56) from the field and was 8-of-10 (80.0 percent) from the charity stripe. The Golden Knights held a sizeable 35-21 rebounding advantage and scored 48 points in the paint, while the Vulcans scored 23 points off turnovers.
Gannon senior Zay Jackson finished with 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting and collected three rebounds, three assists and two steals in 37 minutes. Sophomore Frank Webb, Jr. registered 14 points on a perfect seven-of-seven attempts and added four rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench. Senior Damon Miraud posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds and also collected five assists, two blocks and three steals while playing 32 minutes.
Cal U closes its three-game road trip on Saturday, Feb. 10, when it travels to face Pitt-Johnstown at 3 p.m.
