ERIE, Pa.- Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) once again led West Chester in scoring with 24 points on 7-of-15 shooting as one of three Golden Rams in double figures but it was not enough to help lead West Chester (6-4, 3-1) to an upset victory over No. 18/17 Gannon (10-0, 4-0) on Tuesday night as the Golden Knights earned a 114-94 victory over the Golden Rams.
Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) finished with 20 points of her own, while
Jordan Kellier (Kingston, Jamaica/Redemption Christian) finished with a double-double, scoring 11 points and posting 10 rebounds.
Mirko Bramati (Bologna, Italy/St. Thomas More) nearly finished in double figures as well, scoring nine points on 4-of-6 shooting after converting three of his last four to end the game.
Josh Omojafo led all scorers with 32 points on Tuesday night, reaching this plateau on 10-of-17 shooting while also coming away with six rebounds. Derrick Anderson finished with 21 points, while Lyle Tipton added 18 of his own to go along with 14 from Mike Montano and 10 from Zach Hobbs.
The Golden Rams and Golden Knights traded points throughout the first 10-and-a-half minutes of the game as West Chester held a 26-24 lead after an 8-0 run, which included five points from Kellier and a made three by Smith, giving the Golden Rams the lead.
The lead did not last for long as Gannon responded with an 11-3 run to take a 35-29 lead over the Golden Rams with 6:09 to play in the first half. West Chester kept things close as the half progressed, trailing 39-37 with 3:59 to play before a late run by the Golden Knights gave the hosts a 50-44 lead heading into the halftime break.
In the first half, Smith led the Golden Rams in scoring with 11 points, while Kellier added nine of his own as WCU shot 46.7 % (14-of-30) from the field and 28.6 % (4-for-14) from three-point range through the first 20 minutes of action.
For Gannon, Josh Omojafo led all scorers with 13 points in the first half and was the lone Golden Knight in double figures as the visitors shot 41.0 % (16-of-39) from the field and 28.6 % (4-of-14) from three-point range, while also connecting on 14-of-21 from the line in the opening half.
Gannon flexed its offensive muscle to open the second half, starting on a 21-4 run over the first five minutes of action to take a 71-48 lead over the Golden Rams. West Chester battled back as the half went on, using an 11-2 run with just under 10 minutes remaining in regulation as Allen scored six to help West Chester cut the deficit to 86-75.
West Chester continued its comeback effort down the stretch of the second half, but Gannon kept the upset-minded Golden Rams at bay down the stretch, holding on for a 114-94 victory on Tuesday night.
West Chester shot 47.7 % (31-of-65) from the field and 36.0 % (9-of-25) from three-point range while also converting 23-of-26 attempts at the line, finishing the night with an 88.5 % free throw percentage. For its part, Gannon shot 50.7 % (38-of-75) from the field and 33.3 % (6-of-18) from three-point range while also shooting 74.4 % (32-of-43) at the line.
Despite the setback, West Chester ended the game with a 40-39 lead in rebounding, including a 25-21 lead on the defensive glass.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Saturday, December 30, at home against Clarion, with the opening tip set for 3 p.m.
