HAZLETON, PA: (January 24, 2011) – Despite scoring 49 points and shooting on just 34.5% from the field, the Arcadia University Men's Basketball team (5-12 Overall) was able to pull out a seven point road victory against the Nittany Lions of Penn State Hazleton in a non conference matchup. The win snaps the Knights' six game losing streak, giving the team its first win since December 17 (against Rosemont).
The Knights got off the bus tonight ready to play and were up 14-2 with 11:43 left in the first, but the Nittany Lions fought back on two straight treys cutting the lead to four only 16 seconds later. Penn State was able to tie the game at 20-all with 3:14 to go in the half but a Colin McCarthy '12 (Langhorne, PA/Holy Ghost Prep) layup with 31 seconds to go gave the Knights a 22-20 halftime lead. Both teams struggled in the first half only putting up 42 total points. The Knights only shot 31.3% (10-32 FG) from the field, while Penn State Hazleton shot just under that at 30.8% (8-26 FG). The Nittany Lions did have four three-pointers while Arcadia shot 0-12 from beyond the arc. The Knights outscored the home team in the paint by a 16-8 margin and had eight points off turnovers compared to zero by the Nittany Lions.
The second half did not bring the offensive fire power everyone in the gym was hoping for but it was exciting nonetheless. Jason Thompson '12 (Cape May, NJ/Middle Twp.), who shot 0-7 in the first half, responded on the first shot of the half with a trey putting the Knights ahead at the 18:51 mark, but the Nittany Lions responded with a 7-0 run to gain their first lead of the night with 17:01 remaining. Arcadia took notice and added their own 6-0 run to regain the lead, a lead they held onto for the rest of the night resulting in the 49-42 victory.
For the game, the Knights were led by McCarthy who had a career night, putting up 21 points and pulling down a game high 11 rebounds, en route to a double-double. Senior Darrell Mills (Philadelphia, PA/Engineering and Science) tallied up six points along with nine rebounds, six of which were offensive boards, while first year player Eric O'Hora (Scranton, PA/Holy Cross) had six points as well to go along with two steals and three assists. Penn State Hazleton was led by Mike Abramcheck's 11 points and 10 rebounds, as well as Leron Kosh's game high six assits.
The Knights will look at add another win to their record when they host non conference opponent Berkeley College this Wednesday night at the Kuch Center. Tip off for the men's only game is scheduled for 7 PM.
