WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) scored 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting to lead all scorers and help lead the West Chester University men's basketball team (12-6, 9-3) to an 83-73 victory over Mansfield (6-12, 4-9) on Saturday afternoon.
West Chester found itself locked in a tight one early as the game featured six ties and seven lead changes in the first half, but West Chester opened the second half on a 22-10 run and never looked back, leading by as many as 18 to improve to 12-6 overall and 9-3 in league play.
After scoring six points in the first half, Smith scored 17 in the second half, going 6-for-8 from the field in the second half to help propel the Golden Ram offense. Smith was one of four Golden Rams in double figures in the victory as
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) finished with 18 to go along with 16 from
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) and 15 more from
Jordan Kellier (Kingston, Jamaica/Redemption Christian). In addition to his 15 points, Kellier also corralled 12 rebounds and dished a pair of assists, while
Anthony Purnell Jr. (Chester, Pa./Kiski) led the team in assists with five.
The first half was a slow start for both teams as the score after 20 minutes of basketball was 33-28 in favor of the Golden Rams. West Chester went on the best run of the game by either side late in the first half with a 5-0 run, which transformed a slim 26-24 lead into a 31-24 lead, the largest lead of the game by either team to that point.
Shooting 46.4 % (13-of-28) from the field, including a 2-for-10 (20.0 %) effort from three-point range, West Chester led by as many as seven late in the first quarter as
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) led all scorers with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the first half.
Walker was the lone player for either side in double figures after 20 minutes, as Manir Waller and Michael Dickson tied for the team lead in scoring for Mansfield with seven points each. Mansfield shot 46.2 % (12-of-26) from the field in the first half, including a 3-of-13 (23.1 %) effort from deep, while also going 1-for-2 at the line.
At halftime on Saturday afternoon, West Chester had the opportunity to honor its UCA National Championship cheerleading squad after the Golden Rams captured a National Title in the Open All-Girl Gameday Division back on January 12.
Mansfield continued to hang tough through the first four-and-a-half minutes of the second half, but West Chester was able to extend its lead to nine at the first media timeout of the second half with 15:15 to play. Kellier hit a pair of free throws out of the media, which stretched the lead to 46-35, giving the Golden Rams their first double-digit lead of the afternoon.
With a double-digit lead, West Chester would not allow its guests to cut the advantage to single digits again as the Golden Rams led by as many as 18 with just over six minutes to play en route to the 83-73 victory.
Myles Grey (Reading, Pa./Reading) was clutch as the line down the stretch of the second half as the freshman guard finished tied with
Mirko Bramati (Bologna, Italy/St. Thomas More) with four points to lead the Golden Rams second unit in scoring.
West Chester shot a blistering 69.2 % (18-of-26) from the field in the second half, including an even 50.0 % (4-of-8) from distance, while also going 10-for-15 (65.2 %) from the line. This stellar second-half performance helped West Chester shoot 57.4 % (31-of-54) from the field for the game while going 6-for-18 (33.3 %) from deep and connecting on 15-of-23 (65.2 %) from the stripe.
For Mansfield, the Mounties ended the game shooting 42.2 % (27-of-64) from the field and 29.0 % (9-of-31) from three-point range while also shooting 90.9 % (10-of-11) from the line in the setback.
Dickson and Waller finished the day tied for first on the team in scoring with 14 points each, while Scott Woodring also finished with 13 points in the loss.
West Chester ended the game with a 40-26 lead in rebounding, including a 10-8 lead on the offensive glass, which resulted in a 14-9 lead in second-chance points. West Chester also ended the game with a 40-26 lead in points in the paint.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Monday night against Millersville beginning at 7:30 p.m.
