SHIPPENSBURG, Pa.- Anthony Purnell Jr. (Chester, Pa./Kiski) scored a team-high 19 points on 6-of-14 shooting, but it was not enough to lead the No. 22/25 West Chester University men's basketball team (19-5, 14-3) to a victory over an upset-minded Shippensburg (8-16, 5-12) squad on Wednesday night. Shippensburg got off to a strong start on Wednesday and used its early advantage to hold off a second-half comeback bid by the Golden Rams for an 85-81 victory in Heiges Field House.
West Chester trailed by as many as 22 midway through the first half but, thanks in part to 15 made threes, cut the deficit to as few as three points in the waning seconds of regulation. Unfortunately for the nationally ranked Golden Rams, three points away was as close as they were able to get in the four-point loss after the Raiders closed the game out at the free throw line.
Purnell Jr. was one of four Golden Rams in double figures as
Dylan Blair (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) added 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including five makes from distance, while
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) and
Saleem Payne (Philadelphia, Pa./Phelps School) added 15 and 10 points, respectively.
West Chester shot 36.3 % (29-of-80) from the field in the loss, including a 15-for-34 (44.1 %) effort from beyond the arc, while also going 8-for-12 (66.7 %) at the free throw line.
Shippensburg got off to a hot start offensively, shooting a blistering 60.6 % (20-of-33) from the field in the first half, including a 3-for-7 (42.9 %) effort from three-point range to surge out to a 50-38 lead at the half after leading by as many as 22 midway through the first half.
Led by 14 first-half points by Jaydon Smith, the Raiders immediately put the nationally-ranked Golden Rams on upset alert.
West Chester began its comeback bid in the second half, cutting the deficit to five with just under six minutes to play after an Allen three before getting it down to four with a minute to play after an
Anthony Purnell Jr. (Chester, Pa./Kiski) layup, which capped a 23-17 Golden Ram run over a 10—minute span.
Shippensburg stretched its lead back to six at the free throw line before two more Purnell Jr. free throws made the score 80-76 in favor of Shippensburg with 30 seconds to play.
Shippensburg got its lead back up to six quickly with two more makes at the free throw line before Allen countered with another driving layup to make the score 82-78 before Purnell Jr. cut the deficit to 84-81 with his third made three of the evening with 10 seconds to play.
This was as close as West Chester could get in the upset loss as the Raiders held on for an 85-81 victory over the Golden Rams.
Markus Frank led all scorers with 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field, along with eight rebounds, while Timmy Conner added 20 of his own on 8-of-13 shooting.
Shippensburg shot north of 52 % in both halves, ending the game shooting 57.4 % (31-of-54) from the field, including 42.9 % (6-of-14) from three-point range, while also going 17-for-30 (56.7 %) at the line. The Raiders made free throws when they mattered most on Wednesday night, going 10-for-18 in the second half to close out the upset victory.
Despite the loss, West Chester ended the game with a 45-39 lead in rebounding, including a 26-11 lead on the offensive glass, which led to a 22-15 lead in second-chance points. Allen led West Chester in rebounding with nine in the loss.
West Chester also ended the game with a 21-19 lead in turnovers and a 20-18 lead in points off turnovers.
Up Next:
West Chester will be back in action next Wednesday night vs East Stroudsburg beginning at 7:30 p.m.
