MILLERSVILLE, Pa.-After a dominant 49-point victory over Bloomsburg on Saturday afternoon, which set a new mark under head coach
Damien Blair for the largest margin of victory over a PSAC East foe, the West Chester University men's basketball team (16-4, 11-2) returned to action at rival Millersville (12-8, 8-5) on Wednesday night. West Chester opened the second half on a 10-2 run to cut into a halftime deficit, but it was not enough as Millersville earned a 91-55 victory over the visiting Golden Rams.
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) led West Chester in scoring with 13 points, while
Moro Osumanu (Reading, Pa./Reading) matched his season-high with 10 points as the lone other Golden Ram in double figures.
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) led the team in rebounding with five in the loss.
West Chester found itself down 15-2 in the early stages of the first half and trailed by as many as 21 (38-17) late in the first half before heading into the locker room trailing 40-23.
West Chester shot just 26.9 % (7-of-26) from the field and did not hit a three in the first half while going 9-for-13 (69.2 %) from the line in the first 20 minutes.
West Chester stormed out of the halftime break and cut the deficit to just nine (42-33) after a pair of threes by Allen and two layups by Osumanu.
Millersville got its lead back to 15 with 15 minutes to play after a three-point play by Jahme Ested, and after Drew Stover's third block of the night on a three-point attempt by Allen, the Marauders restored a 17-point advantage early in the second half.
Millersville stretched its lead from 17 with 15 minutes to play to 25 in the next three-and-a-half minutes, holding a commanding 65-40 lead with 11:30 to play in regulation. The Marauders continued to impress down the stretch of the second half, stretching their lead to as many as 37 with 3:42 to play in a 91-55 victory over the Golden Rams.
West Chester shot just 28.8 % (15-of-52) from the field and 14.3 % (2-of-14) from three-point range, while also connecting on 23-of-31 (74.2 %) at the charity stripe in the loss.
Millersville shot a blistering 54.2 % (32-of-59) from the field, including 36.4 % (8-of-22) from three-point range, while also going 19-for-23 (82.6 %) at the line. The Marauders also ended the game with a 45-24 lead in rebounding, including a 13-10 lead on the offensive glass.
Jahme Ested finished with 17 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the field as one of five Marauders in double figures in the 36-point victory over the streaking Golden Rams.
Up Next:
West Chester will be back in action on Saturday afternoon at Lock Haven beginning at 3 p.m.
