CALIFORNIA (Feb. 8) – Led by four players scoring in double figures, the California (PA) men's basketball team posted a 78-54 win over Gannon at the Convocation Center in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play on Wednesday night.
With the win, the Vulcans improve to 12-12 overall with a 9-9 record in league play. Cal also earned a regular-season sweep over Gannon for the first time since the 2011-12 campaign. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights fall to 2-20 this year behind a 2-15 mark in conference competition.
Sophomore
Cam Polak (West Homestead, Pa./Steel Valley) scored a game-high 22 points for his sixth game of at least 20 points this season. He finished 7-of-13 from the floor, including four-of-eight from three-point territory, and went a perfect four-for-four from the charity stripe. Additionally, Polak collected three rebounds, two assists and two steals in the victory. The Steel Valley product is averaging 13.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game with a .447 shooting percentage this year.
Sophomore
Keith Palek III (Woodbine, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) notched 12 points on four-of-nine shooting with a pair of three-pointers. Palek also recorded seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Sophomore
Kadyn Hannah (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) tied a season best of 11 points in addition to two rebounds, one assist and one steal off the bench. Redshirt freshman
Donald Whitehead, Jr. (Hermitage, Pa./Hickory) registered 10, three assists and three steals, while redshirt junior
Jermaine Hall, Jr. (Baltimore, Md./Severn School) and freshman
KJ McClurg (Morgantown, W.Va./University) posted nine points each.
After surrendering the initial four points of the contest, Cal went on an 11-6 rally and led by an 11-10 margin at the 15:43-mark. The Vulcans followed by scoring eight of the next 10 points to stretch their advantage to 19-12. Following a trio of free-throws, Cal grabbed a double-digit edge with a 27-17 lead. The Golden Knights were held scoreless for the next five minutes as the Vulcans increased their advantage to a 36-17 margin with 4:08 to play in the first half. Gannon mounted momentum in the closing minutes of the half by constructing a 12-5 rally to cut the deficit to 41-29 at the break after a midrange jumper from Demetrius Mims.
Cal opened the second half with a 9-4 run capped by a midrange jumper from Polak to take a 50-33 advantage. At the 11:16-mark, Palek connected on a long-range attempt that extended the Cal lead to 20 points, 57-37. In a back-and-forth affair, the Vulcans maintained their advantage with a 69-38 lead at the 5:55-mark followed by Cal tallying 11-unanswered points to claim a 30-point advantage, 78-48. The Vulcans limited Gannon to only six points in the final five minutes of the contest.
Cal shot 24-of-68 (35.3 percent) from the floor and converted 34.4 percent (11-of-32) from three-point territory. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights shot at a 43.4 clip (23-of-54) with a 30.0 conversion rate (3-of-10) from beyond the arc. Gannon held a slight 38-37 rebounding edge, while the Vulcans collected 16 assists.
Mims finished the game with 20 points, nine rebounds, two assists and one block. Zach Kent recorded six points and five boards. Ronny Raphael tallied six points and three assists while Robertas Jonaitis also scored six points with two rebounds.
Cal returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 11 by travels to Erie, Pennsylvania, to face Mercyhurst in PSAC West action at 7:30 p.m.
