ERIE, Pa. - The Gannon men's basketball team fended off a 13-0 Mercyhurst run in the final 3:20 with two free throws and defensive stand in the waning seconds as the fifth-ranked Golden Knights escaped a jammed-packed Mercyhurst Athletic Center with a thrilling 59-57 victory over their cross town rival Wednesday night.

Gannon seemed to be in control for the majority of the game, despite playing its 11th straight game without leading scorer and rebounder Kyle Goldcamp (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic). The Golden Knights improved to 9-2 during the stretch which included important road victories at Indiana (Pa.), Edinboro, and Mercyhurst.

Pierre Howard (Chicago, Ill./Bloom) scored six consecutive points and Tyler Stoczynski (Erie, Pa./McDowell) drilled a three-pointer as Gannon raced out to a 13-5 lead 4:53 into the contest.

Mercyhurst twice cut the deficit to three points in the first half, the last coming at 21-18 on Elliot Engelmann's triple at the 6:36 mark. However, Gannon ended the half with a 10-1 run over the final 5:39. The Golden Knights grabbed two straight offensive rebounds on their final possession of the half, which led to Dave Wilson's (Vidalia, La./Vidalia) jumper with two ticks left on the clock. The late rally sent Gannon to the intermission with a 31-19 edge.

Gannon's advantage stood in double digits for the first 17 minutes of the second half with the exception of two nine-point leads. Howard's lay-up with 7:55 left gave the Golden Knights their largest lead at 53-38. Head coach John T. Reilly's squad still led 57-44 after Mark Demski's (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) jumper from the free throw line with 3:36 to play.

That's when things started to get a little exciting at the MAC. Anthony Terry started a 13-0 run with a three-pointer. Brian McTear scored the next five points, before Jeremiah Wise's lay-up pulled the Lakers with 57-54 with 1:21 remaining.

Following an offensive rebound, McTear pulled up and drilled a triple from well beyond the arc to tie the game at 57 with 58 seconds left. It marked the first time Gannon didn't own the lead since Mercyhurst had a 3-2 lead.

As it has done all year, the senior-laden Golden Knights hung tough and pulled out the victory in the closing seconds. Joe Lindsey (Spring Valley, N.Y./Spring Valley) was fouled driving to the basket on Gannon's next possession. He made one of two free throws to put Gannon back in front, 58-57, with 34 seconds remaining on the clock.

Jordan Armstrong was then fouled going in for a lay-up with 22 ticks left. Following a Gannon timeout, the junior missed the first free throw. Following a second Gannon timeout, Armstrong then missed his second attempt and Stoczynski was fouled after grabbing the rebound.

Stoczynski missed the first and made the second, putting Gannon up 59-57 with 20 seconds to play. The Golden Knights then made a final defensive stand to secure the victory, McTear initially missed a tough lay-up. Stu Anglum grabbed the offensive rebound and missed a putback while falling to the floor. George Johnson (Arlington, Va./Wakefield) secured the defensive rebound as the final horn sounded.

Howard led all scorers with 20 points, hitting 7-of-11 free throws. Stoczynski and Wilson both recorded double-doubles. Stoczynski posted his fifth career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Wilson produced his second career double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. The senior forward had 10 points and 12 rebounds in the first half.

Gannon shot 40 percent (22-55) from the field, 13.3 percent (2-15) from three-point range, and 61.9 percent (13-21) from the free throw line.

McTear was the only Laker in double digits, scoring 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Mercyhurst shot 42.3 percent (22-52) from the floor, including a 26.9-percent (6-23) clip in the first half. The Lakers shot 40 percent (8-20) from behind the arc and 45.5 percent (5-11) from the charity stripe.

Gannon, ranked No. 5 in NCAA Division II and No. 2 in the latest NCAA Division II Atlantic regional rankings, improved to 17-2 overall and 6-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division with its sixth consecutive victory. Mercyhurst, ranked seventh in the latest regional rankings, dropped to 15-5 overall and 3-4 in conference play. The Golden Knights return to action Saturday, February 7 against California (Pa.) at the Hammermill Center. The Vulcans are the only team to defeat Gannon in the first round of PSAC West play. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

For a complete box score from Wednesday's Gannon-Mercyhurst men's basketball game, please click here.