WEST CHESTER, Pa.- West Chester (6-5, 3-2) found itself behind early in the second half after leading for all but 19 seconds of the opening half but it was a 20-2 run midway through the second period of action, which proved to be the difference maker as the Golden Rams topped Seton Hill (5-6, 2-3) by a 82-68 final score.
In a game that featured six ties and two lead changes,
Eli Barrett (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg) was a storyline for West Chester, leading the team in scoring with 20 points and 12 rebounds for his third double double of the
season entering PSAC east play.
Barrett was one of five Golden Rams in double figures, marking the second time this season in which West Chester had five or more players in double figures.
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) finished with 18 of his own while
Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) came away with 16 to go along with a pair of 11-point efforts from
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) and
Jamil Manigo (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt).
As a team, West Chester shot 47.7 % (31-of-65) from the field and 33.3 % (7-of-21) from three-point range while going 13-of-17 (76.5 %) from the line.
Seton Hill, who shot 43.9 % (29-of-66) from the field and a dismal 8.3 % (2-of-24) from three-point range to go along with a 42.1 % (8-of-19) effort at the line, was led by Samuel Tabe, who posted a game-high 24 points on 11-of-18 shooting and made one of two three pointers for the Griffins in the setback. All told, Seton Hill had four players in double figures as Gabe Gillespie finished with 11 while Ryan Meis and Sean Dillon each had 10 in the setback.
Both sides struggled to find their rhythm from the floor in the first four minutes of action but it was West Chester who shot a slightly better 3-of-9 from the field thanks to four points from
Eli Barrett (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg) to take a 6-2 lead into the first media timeout.
The first half remained close until back-to-back threes by West Chester from
Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) and Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) with just under eight minutes to play, capped off an 8-0 run for the Golden Rams and extended the lead back to 11 (28-17) with 7:39 to play in the first half. Seton Hill did not allow the lead to grow following the third media timeout of the first half, countering with a 8-0 run, thanks in large part to four points from Gabe Gillespie, making the score 28-25 in favor of the Golden Rams with 3:15 to play after a three-pointer, which would have tied the game from Sean Dillon was off target.
Seton Hill went on a 5-0 run over the next 45 seconds, which allowed the Griffins to take their first lead of the game, however, the advantage was short lived as West Chester was able to retake the lead and carry a 33-32 advantage into the halftime break.
Allen led the team in scoring with nine points in the first half as West Chester shot 40.0 % from the field and 36.4 % from three-point range while also going 5-for-8 (62.5 %) from the line in the opening half.
Seton Hill opened the second half on a 12-6 run that spanned the first four minutes to lead by five (44-39) with 16 minutes to play. Over the next three minutes, West Chester outscored its guests 8-2, including six points from
Jamil Manigo (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) to erase the deficit and take a 47-46 lead.
Manigo and the Golden Rams continued their run over the next few minutes, eventually stretching the lead to 13-points with 10:25 to play, which was the largest of the game thanks to a 20-2 run by the Golden Rams. West Chester continued its impressive second-half performance as the clock ticked under 10 minutes with WCU extend the lead to as many as 18, making the score 68-50 with just over 6:30 to play in regulation.
As the game wound its way to its conclusion, West Chester continued to hold on to its lead, thanks to five players in double figures, rolling to a 82-68 victory over Seton Hill to improve to 3-2 in league play ahead of the PSAC East opener on Wednesday night vs Mansfield.
Despite the victory, Seton Hill did manage to end the game with a slim 40-38 advantage in rebounding, however, this did not prove overly costly to the Golden Rams as the Griffins outscored them by a narrow 15-12 margin in second-chance points. West Chester did end the game with a 13-10 advantage in points off turnovers and a 14-12 lead in points off the break, ending the contest with a plus-four advantage in the turnover battle. Tonight, marked the third game in a row in which West Chester outscored its guests off the break, while also marking the most points West Chester has scored via a fast break since scoring 20 points in the win over Gannon earlier this season.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to the court in the New Year with a matchup against Mansfield on Wednesday night beginning at 7:30 p.m. inside Hollinger Field House.
