MANSFIELD, Pa.- Davante Dennis (Baltimore, Pa./Red Lion) scored a team-high 26 points on 12-of-20 shooting from the field and came through with a game-sealing steal of a late inbounds pass to help lead West Chester (15-3, 10-1) to an 80-78 victory over Mansfield (6-13, 3-9) on the road on Wednesday night.
After trailing by as many as seven in the first half, West Chester held a 10-point lead early in the second but needed a late 9-3 run, punctuated by a pair of
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) free throws with less than a second on the clock to escape Mansfield with a two-point victory.
Dennis was one of three Golden Rams in double figures in the victory as
Dylan Blair (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) and
Anthony McCall (Philadelphia, Pa./ANC) chipped in 15 points each. Blair picked up his third double-double in as many games with a team-high 10 rebounds while also handing out six of 18 assists for West Chester in the PSAC East triumph.
West Chester shot 38.8 % (31-of-80) from the field, including 6-for-16 (37.5 %) from deep, while also going 12-for-14 (85.7 %) at the line, including a perfect 10-for-10 effort in the second half, which was crucial to helping the Golden Rams erase a 75-71 deficit with under two minutes to play.
Mansfield opened the game on a 14-9 run over the first six-and-a-half minutes, led by five early points from Sterling Scott to put the visiting Golden Rams on notice early on Wednesday night.
Mansfield stretched its lead to seven (20-13) with 11:09 to play in the first half after a quick 6-2 Mountie run, which included four points in 30 seconds from Scott and a layup by Wilson with 11:09 to play in the opening half.
Anthony Purnell Jr. (Chester, Pa./Kiski) sparked a 6-0 West Chester run with a layup with 10:30 to play. After a
Nix Varano (Chalfont, Pa./La Salle College HS) jumper and another layup by Dennis, West Chester found itself back within one with 8:18 to play until halftime.
Led by seven more points from Dennis, West Chester went on a 16-10 run from this point to grab a 35-30 lead with 1:45 to play until halftime after a jumper by Blair.
Blair's jumper in the paint later in the first half was the final made field goal of the opening half as Mansfield mustered two more points at the line, and Walker scored his final point of the half with a 1-for-2 trip to the line with 48 seconds to play to give the visitors a 36-32 lead heading into the break.
Dennis led all scorers in the first half with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting, as West Chester shot 37.2 % (16-of-43) from the field.
Scott led Mansfield in scoring with 12 first-half points of his own on 5-of-10 shooting from the field, including a pair of makes from three-point range. Mansfield shot 40.0 % (12-of-30) from the field in the first half, including a 5-for-12 (41.7 %) effort from three-point range.
After a first half, which featured three ties and a pair of lead changes, West Chester stretched its lead to as many as 10 with 15:25 to play after Blair hit two at the line to give the Golden Rams a 50-40 lead.
Mansfield countered with a 30-19 run from this point, led by 10 points from Scott to claim a 70-69 lead with 3:44 to play in the second half, prompting a Golden Ram timeout.
Dennis gave West Chester a slim 71-70 lead before a 5-0 Mansfield run gave the hosts a 75-71 lead with two minutes to play. West Chester closed regulation on a 9-3 run, including two made free throws by Walker with less than a second to play to lift the Golden Rams to an 80-78 victory over the Mountaineers.
Scott led Mansfield in scoring 32 points on 10-of-18 shooting while also going 4-for-6 from three-point range and 8-of-9 at the free-throw line as one of two Mountaineers in double figures. Ty Crespo was the second and final Mountie in double figures as he finished with 13 points, with five of those 13 coming at the line (5-for-6 FT).
Mansfield shot 42.6 % (23-of-54) from the field and 42.9 % (9-of-21) from three-point range while also going 23-for-27 (85.2 %) at the free throw line.
West Chester ended the game with a 49-35 lead in rebounding, including a 24-9 lead on the offensive glass, which resulted in a 25-12 lead in second-chance points and helped West Chester end the night with a 42-22 lead in points in the paint.
West Chester also ended the game with an 18-16 lead in turnovers and a 17-12 lead in points off turnovers, thanks in part to 10 steals.
Up Next:
West Chester will look to wrap up its January home slate with a victory on Saturday afternoon, beginning at 3 p.m., against PSAC East rival Bloomsburg.
