JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (Feb. 21) – Redshirt senior
Zyan Collins moved into fifth place on the school's all-time scoring list on Wednesday night, as the No. 9 California (PA) men's basketball team claimed an 86-71 victory at Pitt-Johnstown in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.
RECORDS/SERIES
• The Vulcans improve to 22-3 this season behind a 16-3 record in league play.
• The Mountain Cats drop to 6-20 overall with a 4-16 mark in conference action.
• Cal swept the season series with UPJ for the first time since the Mountain Cats joined the PSAC a decade ago.
STATS
• Collins scored 17 points on 8-of-15 shooting and also added three rebounds and six assists.
• He surpassed a trio of former standouts [Brent Pegram, 2018-22; Derrick Scott, 1993-97; Cliff Mitchell 1982-86] on Wednesday to vault into fifth place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,671 points.
• Collins ranks second among active players in the PSAC, and among the top 25 overall in NCAA Division II, in career scoring.
• Redshirt sophomore
Bryson Lucas led the team and tied his career high of 19 points behind 8-of-12 from the floor at UPJ.
• He also collected nine rebounds (three offensive), five assists, four blocks and a career-high six steals in 27 minutes.
• Sophomore
Donald Whitehead, Jr. finished with 10 points, five rebounds and four assists in the win.
• Classmate
KJ McClurg totaled 16 points, five rebounds and two assists while playing 34 minutes.
• Junior
Keith Palek III added 12 points in only 10 minutes off the bench on Wednesday.
GAME ACTION
• The Vulcans raced out to a 15-2 lead in the opening seven minutes after scoring 11-unanswered points to start the game.
• UPJ then made four-consecutive field goals to mount an 11-5 rally to cut the deficit to 20-13 at the 10:31-mark.
• Cal responded with a dominating 28-9 run over the next nine-plus minutes after shooting 11-of-18 from the floor to take a 48-22 lead with 1:20 left before the break.
• The Vulcans held a 50-26 lead at halftime after shooting 60 percent (21-of-35) from the floor in the first half.
• Cal claimed its largest lead of the game at 26 points, 54-28, with 17:41 remaining.
• The Vulcans maintained a sizeable lead of 20 or more points until virtually the final two minutes of the contest.
• Cal finished the game shooting at a 53.6 clip (37-of-69) from the floor and collected 20 assists.
• The Vulcans scored 58 points from inside the paint in the victory.
• UPJ freshman Vinnie Cugini led the team with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and added five rebounds.
NEXT
• Cal returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 24, when it hosts Mercyhurst for Senior Day at the Convocation Center with play starting at 3 p.m.
