CALDWELL, N.J.- Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting while also grabbing nine rebounds to help lead the West Chester University men's basketball team (8-2) to an 80-76 over Caldwell (8-3) on Saturday afternoon in non-league action.
Walker was one of four Golden Rams in double figures as
Dylan Blair (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) finished with 16 on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and a 7-for-8 effort at the line along with 13 from
Anthony McCall (Philadelphia, Pa./ANC) and 10 from
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover). Blair also led the Golden Rams in assists with five.
West Chester shot 44.8 % (26-of-58) from the field, including a 25.0 % (2-of-8) effort from three-point range, while also 26-for-32 (81.3 %) at the free throw line as the Golden Rams never trailed by more than three in the four-point road triumph over the Cougars.
Through the first nine minutes and change, West Chester and Caldwell were tied at 18-18 before a 5-0 run in the next minute gave West Chester a 23-18 lead, which quickly morphed into a 27-21 lead, thanks in part to four quick points from Walker.
Caldwell remained close and cut the Golden Ram lead to 29-27 with 4:40 to play in the first half, but West Chester closed the half on a 13-9 run to carry a 42-36 lead into the halftime break.
West Chester shot a solid 57.7 % (15-of-26) from the field in the first half, including a 2-for-4 effort from deep, while also 10-for-12 at the line, as Walker led the Golden Rams with 13 points, along with nine from Blair.
West Chester stretched its lead to as many as 11 (49-38) early in the second half after a good layup by McCall, but the game remained close down the stretch as Caldwell trimmed the lead to just three with under five minutes to play before getting the advantage down to just two with under a minute to play after Derrick Bueno layup for his 11
th points of the day.
Holding a 74-72 lead with 50 seconds to play, West Chester overcame a turnover and scored six of the next 10 points to escape with an 80-76 victory over Caldwell.
DeAngelo Horn led Caldwell in scoring with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting as one of four Cougars in double figures. Bueno finished with 11, Melvin Evans chipped in 13, along with 10 from Kirk Parsons.
Despite the setback, Caldwell shot an even 50.0 % (28-of-56) from the field, including a 5-for-16 (31.3 %) effort from deep but hit just 15-of-32 attempts at the free throw line (46.9 %).
One of the best rebounding teams in DII, West Chester, ended the game with a 42-30 lead in rebounding, including a 10-7 lead on the offensive glass, which resulted in a 10-5 lead in second-chance points. West Chester also ended the game with a 43-34 lead in points in the paint and a 13-11 lead in points off turnovers, despite losing the turnover battle by an 18-13 margin.
Up Next:
West Chester is back in action on Tuesday afternoon at Pitt-Johnstown beginning at 3 p.m. in the Golden Rams non-league finale.
