WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Jordan Kellier (Kingston, Jamaica/ Redemption Christian) completed his 14
th double-double of the year before halftime and finished with 19 points and 16 rebounds as one of five Golden Rams in double figures to help lead the West Chester University men's basketball team (16-9, 13-6) to a 102-59 victory over Shippensburg (8-18, 4-16) on Wednesday night.
Kellier matched his career-high of 19 points on a perfect 9-for-9 shooting night, while
Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) poured in 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, along with a career-high from
Luke Boyd (Somerton, Pa./Archbishop Ryan), who accomplished this feat on 7-of-13 shooting from the field.
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) and
Saleem Payne (Philadelphia, Pa./Phelps School) led the second unit in scoring, finishing with 12 and 10 points each as the WCU bench outscored Shippensburg 44-37.
Tonight's victory over the Raiders is the Golden Rams largest win over Shippensburg since a 100-54 victory on February 5, 1972, in West Chester. Tonight's 43-point triumph is also the Golden Rams' largest PSAC East win since a 107-63 thrashing of Millersville during the 2017-18 season and the team's largest win over a league foe since an 88-37 win over Edinboro during the 2018-19 season.
West Chester trailed for less than a minute on Wednesday night trailing by just three in the early going of the first half before outscoring Shippensburg 44-12 down the stretch of the first half to carry a 31-point lead into the half. West Chester never relinquished this lead in the second half, instead stretching the lead to as many as 45 with just under 13 minutes to play and showcasing its depth down the stretch of the victory.
The Golden Rams depth was on full display on Wednesday night as all 12 Golden Rams who saw playing time scored at least two points, including career-best performances by
Myles Grey (Reading, Pa./Reading), Nix Varano (Chalfont, Pa./La Salle College HS), Payne, Kellier, and Boyd all matched or surpassed their previous career-high performances in the victory.
Shippensburg opened the scoring, but West Chester did not trail for long, using a 14-0 run midway through the first half to take a 25-12 lead with 10:30 to play in the first half.
With an 11-point lead in hand, West Chester dominated the final 10 minutes of the first half, outscoring Shippensburg 30-12 over this stretch to take a 55-24 lead into the halftime break.
Smith led West Chester in scoring with 16 first-half points, while Kellier picked up a double-double after just 20 minutes of action, scoring 15 points and corralling 11 rebounds, including nine on the defensive glass to help West Chester put on a dominant first-half performance.
West Chester was red hot from the field in the first half, shooting a stellar 61.0 % (25-of-41) from the field while also connecting on 5-of-12 (41.7 %) from three-point territory through the first 20 minutes.
For Shippensburg, Markus Frank led the Raiders in scoring in the first half with six points on 3-of-7 shooting. As a team, Shippensburg shot 23.7 % (9-of-38) from the field, including a 4-of-18 (22.2 %) from beyond the arc, while also hitting 50.0 % (2-of-4) from the line.
West Chester continued its dominant performance in the second half, stretching its lead to as many as 35 with 12:39 to play en route to its largest victory over the Raiders since February of the 1971-72 season.
West Chester shot an outstanding 54.1 % (46-of-85) from the field, including a 32.0 % (8-of-25) effort from beyond the arc after shooting 61.0 % (25-of-41) from the field in the first half and 41.7 % (5-of-12) from three-point territory. The Golden Rams went to the line three times, connecting on 2-of-3 at the stripe with all opportunities coming in the second half.
Michael Dunn scored a team-high 13 points off the bench for Shippensburg on Wednesday night as the Raiders second unit accounted for 37 of the team's 59 points in the loss. Markus Frank, who entered as the Raiders leading scorer, averaging 18.5 points per game, was limited by West Chester on Wednesday night as he scored just six first-half points for the Raiders. Shippensburg shot just 23.7 % from the field in the first half and ended the game, shooting 30.6 % from the field and three-point range, going 11-of-36 from deep and 22-for-72 from the floor overall. Shippensburg also connected on 4-of-9 (44.4 %) from the line on Wednesday night, going 2-for-4 in the first half and 2-for-5 in the second half.
Led by 16 rebounds from Kellier, West Chester ended the night with a 54-38 lead in rebounding, including an 18-16 lead on the offensive glass, which translated into a 20-12 lead in second-chance points. West Chester also finished the game with a 16-10 lead in the turnover battle, resulting in the Golden Rams holding a 22-13 advantage in points off turnovers and a 62-18 lead in points in the paint. West Chester also finished the night with a 31-6 lead in points off the break and a 44-37 lead in points off the bench, thanks to 30 combined points from Allen, Payne, and Varano.
Up Next:
West Chester will return to action on Saturday afternoon at Mansfield beginning at 3 p.m.
