CALIFORNIA (Jan. 9) – Despite featuring four starters in double-figures on Wednesday night, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team suffered a 95-84 loss to Slippery Rock at the Convocation Center in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.
With the loss, the Vulcans drop their first divisional contest of the season to fall to 5-8 overall with a 3-4 mark in league play. Meanwhile, The Rock extend its winning streak to seven-straight games and improves to 9-5 this season behind a 6-1 mark in conference action.
Sophomore
Brent Pegram (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.) posted 25 points and made 8-of-11 from free-throw line against Slippery Rock. He added two rebounds, two assists and a game-high five steals while playing 39 minutes on Wednesday. Pegram has now scored at least 20 points in five-consecutive games and is averaging a team-leading 18.7 points per game this season.
Freshman
Zyan Collins (South Riding, Va./Freedom) scored a career-high 23 points and converted seven-of-eight from the charity stripe. He also totaled five rebounds, two assists and two steals in 39 minutes of action. Collins has tallied double-digit points in seven-straight games and posted the first 20-point game of his college career.
Redshirt junior
Donte' Williams (Buffalo, N.Y./Bishop Timon) scored a season-high 19 points on 5-of-11 shots and made 7-of-10 from the free-throw line. He added five rebounds while playing 39 minutes versus The Rock. Freshman
Collin MacAdams (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) tallied 17 points on 7-of-12 attempts and collected five rebounds while playing all 40 minutes.
Both teams traded the initial four baskets of the contest before Slippery Rock mounted a 10-5 run to take a 15-10 lead at the 16:34-mark of the first half. The Vulcans responded with back-to-back three-pointers and a dunk from Williams to close the gap to 21-18 with 13:20 remaining. The Rock countered with a 9-2 rally to stretch the advantage to 30-20 after making four-of-six from the field, while holding Cal U scoreless over four-plus minutes. Both teams exchanged the next six buckets before the Vulcans trimmed the deficit by scoring six of the next eight points to trail 39-32 at the 5:08-mark. Slippery Rock took a 50-44 lead into the break after the teams traded points over the final five minutes of the first half.
The Rock quickly stretched their lead to 64-50 with 14:35 left in the second half after posting a 14-6 rally, while Cal U was held to just two field goals during the run. Slippery Rock continued to hold a 74-55 advantage with 11:25 remaining, but the Vulcans responded by making four-of-five from the field and knocking down four free-throws. The Rock would continue to make shots late in the second half and expanded the lead to as many as 22 points. Cal U managed to close the gap in the final five-plus minutes of the contest with a 17-6 rally, led by seven points from Collins, as Slippery Rock sealed the 95-84 win.
The Vulcans shot 43.5 percent (27-of-62) from the field while converting 24-of-34 (70.6 percent) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, The Rock finished the game with a .600 field-goal percentage (36-of-60) and made a season-high 15-of-26 attempts (57.7 percent) from three-point range. Slippery Rock held a 37-29 rebounding advantage, while Cal U tallied 18 points off of 14 turnovers.
Senior transfer John Warren II scored a season-high 29 points on 11-of-13 shooting, including six three-pointers, plus four rebounds, five assists and two steals in 33 minutes of action. Junior transfer Jared Armstrong finished with 17 points on six-of-nine attempts, including five from long range, in 21 minutes off the bench, while classmate Micah Till tallied 11 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals in 24 minutes of play.
The Vulcans return to action on Saturday, Jan. 12, when they travel to face Lock Haven in PSAC Crossover play, starting at 3 p.m.
