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SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - The No. 18 West Chester University men's basketball team hit the road on Saturday to square off against fellow Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division opponent Shippensburg University inside the Heiges Field House.
Led by the forward Dustin Sleva, the host Raiders looked unstoppable in the first half and held a 44-26 advantage after the first 20 minutes of action. Although down, the Golden Rams were able to maintain their composure and slowly chip away at the deficit in the second half thanks to some great shooting down the stretch. Closing the game by hitting nine of its last ten shots, the visitors hacked the Shippensburg lead down to just four (87-83) with 56 second remaining, but the Raiders' 4-for-4 shooting from the free throw line over the last 18 seconds allowed the home team to hang on for the 93-83 victory on Saturday.
The loss drops West Chester to 15-2 overall and 11-2 in league games. Conversely, Shippensburg goes to 13-3 on the year and 9-2 in the PSAC after winning its tenth straight at home.
The earlier moments of Saturday's contest were close, as neither side was able to build much of a lead. Up 18-16 at the 13:21 mark, the Raiders orchestrated an 8-0 run to take the first double-digit lead for either side (26-16) with just under 10 minutes remaining. The next handful of minutes saw Shippensburg slowly begin to take control, and back-to-back free throws by Sleva gave the home team its largest cushion of the first half at 42-24 with 2:51 to play. A layup by
Tyrell Long (Philadelphia, Pa. / Bishop McDevitt) trimmed the West Chester deficit to 16 points (42-26), before the Raiders' Conner Clay connected on a jumper to put the home team back on top by 18 (44-26) heading into the locker rooms.
Shippensburg extended its lead to as many as 24 points in the second half, but Head Coach Damien Blair's squad kept their heads and used a smothering press defense to inch their way back into the game. Down 13,
Jawan Collins (Yeadon, Pa. / Academy Park) connected on a three-pointer, and that was followed by a layup from
Jackson Hyland (Avondale, Pa. / Kennett), to slash the Shippensburg advantage to single digits (81-73) with 2:13 to go. After free throws put the Raiders on top by 10, Hyland came through one again – this time with a triple – to keep the visitors within seven points (82-76) with a shade under two minutes remaining. Down nine, the duo of Hyland and Collins answered the bell again by combining to score the next five WCU points to bring the Golden Rams to within just four (87-83) with 56 ticks left on the clock. Despite the late charge, WCU's efforts would not be enough, as Shippensburg closed out the game on a 6-0 spurt to claim the big 93-83 victory at home.
Long's 23 points led four Golden Rams in double figures on Saturday, while Collins poured in a career-high 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting in the loss.
Matt Penecale (Jenkintown, Pa. / Abington) chipped in 13 points against the Raiders and Hyland contributed 12 points and a team-high six rebounds in 37 minutes.
West Chester connected on 52% (33-of-63) of its shots from the field and 9-of-22 (41%) attempts from beyond the arc, while holding an impressive 22-0 advantage in bench scoring.
Dustin Sleva powered Shippensburg with a game-high 31 points in the win and John Castello logged a career-high 22 points and 11 boards for the Raiders on Saturday night.
