INDIANA, Pa. – Junior
Tim Toro (SCRANTON, PA./ABINGTON HEIGHTS) had a career-high 20 points and senior
Frank Rokins (PLAINFIELD, N.J./ST. MARY'S) notched his fourth straight double-double, but the No. 2 seed West Chester University men's basketball team could not overcome a +19 second half but their opponents, as the Golden Rams fell 90-69 against No. 2 and top-seeded Indiana (Pa.) in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship on Saturday evening.
Saturday's loss ends the Golden Rams' run in the PSAC Championship in the semifinals for the second time in the last four seasons, with the last occurrence being a 90-89 victory over IUP in overtime back in 2016. The Crimson Hawks (28-2) will now head to the PSAC Finals for the first time since 2014-15 to square off against Mercyhurst (22-6) who punched its ticket to the championship after downing East Stroudsburg 67-64 earlier this afternoon.
SHORT STORY
The Golden Rams rode the brilliant play of Toro early in the contest to take a five-point lead (16-11) with just over 14 minutes to play in the opener. The host Crimson Hawks battled back to square the outing at 19-19 with under eight remaining before IUP went on to build a lead as many as six points down the stretch. Down by four (35-31), a layup by Toro brought West Chester within a single bucket (35-33) as time expired on the opening 20 minutes of action.
Indiana maintained its advantage for the first three minutes of the second stanza, until a triple by junior
Malik Jackson (LANSDOWNE, PA./ PENN WOOD) put the visitors on top 39-38 with 16:57 remaining in regulation. The Crimson retook the lead on the very next possession and never looked back, as the home team managed to build a lead as many as 20 points down the stretch en route to claiming the 90-69 victory on Saturday night.
WEST CHESTER RUNDOWN
- The Golden Rams connected on 22 of their 68 attempts from the floor in the loss, with WCU's 32% field-goal percentage standing as the lowest by the squad in its last 20 games.
- WCU's 17% (4-of-23) shooting from beyond the arc on Saturday was a new season low for the Golden Rams and the team's four made triples marked the lowest for the Purple & Gold since March 11 of last year.
- The Golden Rams held a +14 advantage in rebounds on the night and converted on 22 second chance points compared to just eight but their opponents.
- Toro's career-high 20 points led four West Chester players in double figures, as senior Jackson Hyland (AVONDALE, PA./KENNETT) (14), Rokins (13) and Jackson (11) all eclipsed the 10-point plateau in the loss.
- Rokin's double-double on Saturday was his 10th of the season, while senior Matt Penecale's (JENKINTOWN, PA./ABINGTON) team-high 10 rebounds marked the most by the guard since his freshman year.
IUP FACTS
- The host Crimson Hawks had a very efficient night shooting the ball, as IUP connected on 57% (30-of-53) of its shots from the floor and an even 50% (12-of-24) of its attempts from beyond the arc on Saturday night.
- Indiana held a 23-7 advantage in bench scoring in the win, while scoring 34 points in the paint and 18 points off turnovers.
- Dante Lombardi tied a career-high with 33 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the floor, including 7-of-11 from beyond the arc.
- Malik Miller added 16 points in the win, and Armoni Foster's 10 points off the bench represented the only other IUP player in double-figures on Saturday evening.
UP NEXT
The Golden Rams (22-8) will now have to wait until tomorrow's NCAA Selection Show (10:30 p.m.) to see if their season continues. Entering the PSAC Championship, West Chester was listed as the No. 7 team in Atlantic Region, but a victory over Shippensburg – No. 6 in the Atlantic – in Wednesday's semifinal should be enough to give WCU one of the eight tickets to the 2019 NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament.
