WEST CHESTER, Pa.-Anthony McCall (Philadelphia, Pa./ANC) scored a career-high 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including a 2-for-4 effort from three-point range to help lead the West Chester University men's basketball team (12-2, 7-0) to an 85-76 victory over Lock Haven (6-7, 3-4).
West Chester trailed for less than a minute in the victory, but this did not mean it was always easy for the Golden Rams as they stretched their winning streak to 12 in a row. West Chester led by as many as 20 midway through the second half but had to withstand a late-game charge by Lock Haven, which saw the Bald Eagles cut the Golden Ram lead to just four with under two minutes to play. McCall scored the final five of his 21 points in the last two minutes, which, along with stifling defense, helped the Golden Rams earn a nine-point victory.
West Chester ended the game shooting 45.3 % (29-of-64) from the field, including 33.3 % (7-of-21) from three-point range, while also going 20-for-31 (64.5 %) at the free throw line.
The Golden Rams had four players finish in double figures.
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) scored 13 points, while
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) and Dylan Blair (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) each scored 10 points. Allen also led West Chester in rebounding, scoring a game-high 10 in victory.
West Chester trailed for less than a minute in the first half, racing out to a 21-7 lead in the first eight minutes before Lock Haven began a comeback bid. The Bald Eagles cut the West Chester lead to 26-17 quickly thanks to a 5-0 run and eventually pulled back to within seven (42-35) heading into the halftime break.
West Chester shot 44.4 % (16-of-36) from the field in the first half, including a 6-for-14 (42.9 %) effort from three-point range, while also going 4-for-9 (44.4 %) at the free throw line.
Moro Osumanu (Reading, Pa./Reading) led West Chester in scoring with nine points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting effort from the field, including a late three.
Lock Haven was led by seven first-half points from Dyllon Scott on 2-of-3 shooting from three-point range as the Bald Eagles shot 46.2 % (12-of-26) from the field, including 41.2 % (7-of-17) from three-point range through the first 20 minutes. Lock Haven also went 4-for-10 at the free throw line in the opening half.
West Chester outscored Lock Haven 17-10 through the first six-and-a-half minutes of the second half to jump out to a 59-45 lead.
West Chester extended its lead to 20 as the game crossed under the 10-minute remaining mark and held a 73-55 lead with 7:28 to play at the under-eight media timeout.
Lock Haven cut the West Chester lead to 12 with 5:21 to play in regulation before getting the deficit down to just six with 2:06 to play as part of a 14-2 Bald Eagle run. Eli Washington and Gabe Springer combined for 11 of 14 points for Lock Haven during this run, including a huge three by Springer, which got the deficit down to six.
Eli Washington got the deficit down to four with a put-back layup before West Chester got a pair of important stops, and McCall scored five of the last nine points of the game to lift West Chester to the 85-76 triumph.
For Lock Haven, Washington led the way with 14 points, including eight in the contest's final minutes, connecting on 7-of-11 from the field despite going 0-for-3 from three-point range.
Lock Haven shot just 44.6 % (25-of-56) from the field, including 37.0 % (10-of-27) from three-point range, while also going 16-for-27 (59.3 %) at the free-throw line.
One of the top rebounding teams in Division II, West Chester, was outrebounded by a slim 38-36 margin, although the Golden Rams still ended the game with a 36-28 lead in points in the paint and a 12-11 lead in second-chance points.
The Golden Rams also won the turnover battle by seven (18-11) and outscored Lock Haven 27-14 in points off turnovers and fast break points.
Osumanu led the West Chester bench in scoring, finishing with nine points as the highest-scoring reserve for either team on Monday night.
Up Next:
West Chester will be back in action on Wednesday night at East Stroudsburg beginning at 7:30 p.m. before hosting Kutztown on Saturday afternoon on what will also be Alumni Day for the Golden Rams. Opening tip vs Kutztown is set for 4 p.m.
