Darby_Carroll celebrating
Tyler Schueck
81
Gallaudet GALM 3-14, 3-6 NEAC
82
Winner Penn State Berks PSBM 2-15, 2-7 NEAC
Gallaudet GALM
3-14, 3-6 NEAC
81
Final
82
Penn State Berks PSBM
2-15, 2-7 NEAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Gallaudet GALM 43 38 81
Penn State Berks PSBM 37 45 82

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men's basketball wins thriller over Gallaudet

READING, PA - The Penn State Berks men's basketball team used clutch shooting down the stretch and got timely defensive stands to earn a thrilling 82-81 victory over Gallaudet University in a North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) contest on Wednesday night at the Beaver Community Center.

The Nittany Lions (2-15, 2-5 NEAC South) trailed 11-2 after the first 2:30 minutes of game play and were down by 11 points (15-4) two minutes later. That deficit later grew to 12 points (23-11) with 9:52 left in the opening half, but Berks went on a 20-8 run over the six minutes of action to even the contest at 31-31 with 3:03 until half. The Bison (3-14, 2-5 NEAC South) responded with a 12-2 run to go ahead by 10 points with 33 seconds until half. E'drise Hightower knocked down a pair of free throws, then got a steal off the ensuing inbound pass and hit another two foul shots to make the Bison lead just six points (43-37) at halftime.

Berks scored the first four points just 50 seconds into the second half to pull within two points at 43-41. Over the next eight minutes, Gallaudet stayed in front, but never lead by more than four points. The Nittany Lions took their first lead of the second half when Hassan Darby drained a 3-pointer to go up 52-50 with 12:47 to go. The lead switched hands five times and was even twice over the next seven minutes of game play. Rene Alexandre made a layup with 5:55 to put Berks up 66-64 and gave them a lead they would not relinquish. The Nittany Lions held their biggest lead of the half at six points (77-71) with just 1:06 left. Berks shot 5-for-6 from the free throw line down the stretch to help the victory. Hightower knocked down a pair of free throws with 7 seconds left and the Bison hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make the final score just one point in Berks' favor.

Latrell Carroll finished with a team-high in points (21) and rebounds (12) to notch his 12 double-double of the season. The freshman forward shot 8-of-14 from the field and had his best performance of the season at the free throw line, where he finished a perfect 5-for-5. In addition, Carroll had two assists, two steals, and one blocked shot in 38 solid minutes of action.

Darby enjoyed a career-best performance to help in the winning effort. The junior forward shot 5-of-6 from the field and was 2-of-2 from long range to finish with a career-high 15 points. He also pulled down seven boards, which eclipsed his previous best of six. Darby finished 3-for-5 from the free throw line.

Alexandre and Hightower rounded out the Nittany Lions scoring in double figures with 10 points each. Alexandre handed out four assists, while Hightower had three to go with a pair of steals. Steve Luchansky had seven points - all of which came in the second half - and dished out a team-high five assists, while Monty Farmer also had seven points. Matt Seip, who was saddled with foul trouble throughout the night, had six points and five boards. Brandon Wise matched Seip with six points.

Gallaudet got an amazing all around performance from Preston Kelly, who finished with 31 points, eight assists, seven boards, and seven steals. Noah Valenica chipped in 14 points, while Steve Valencia-Biskupiak and Corey Smith both had 10.

Berks has suffered several tight defeats this season and in each of those games they were snake bitten by poor foul shooting. Today's victory came on the heels of their best performance from the charity stripe after shooting 77.3% (17-for-22). The Nittany Lions were also a very efficient 52.7% (29-of-55) from the floor.

The Nittany Lions will travel to New York to face SUNY Cobleskill in a NEAC Crossover contest on Saturday, January 26 at 3 p.m.
 
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