ERIE, Pa. – The Gannon men's basketball team's recipe for success is becoming well known. The Golden Knights dominated the glass and shot lights out during the second half again en route to an 82-59 victory against California (Pa.) Saturday afternoon at the Hammermill Center.
Gannon shot 64.7 percent during the second half, hitting 11-of-17 shots. The Golden Knights have shot 50 percent or better during the second half in six consecutive games, including a second-half chart over 60 percent during four of those six contests. Overall, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference's top shooting team has shot over 50 percent for the entire game during five of its last six contests. The Knights entered the week as the 13th-best shooting team in NCAA Division II.
Head coach
John T. Reilly's club also continued its fine job at the free throw line. Already ranked fifth in the conference, the Golden Knights iced the victory with a 23-of-24 showing at the line.
The final aspect of the deadly trio came on the glass where Gannon produced a large 43-25 advantage. The Golden Knights have out-rebounded 10 consecutive opponents, including seven of those by double digits.
Gannon pounced on Cal early and often, racing out to a 16-5 lead 7:09 into the contest. After the Vulcans scored the opening basket immediately off the jump ball, the Golden Knights answered with nine straight points.
Oscar Macias (Cicero, Ill./Morton) netted the first points on a three-pointer. His lay-up after field goals from
C.J. Oldham (Solon, Ohio/Solon) and
Darrell Blanton (Cleveland, Ohio/Euclid) gave the home squad a 9-2 edge a little over three minutes into the contest.
The lead ballooned to 16-5 with 12:51 left in the first half after a quick 7-0 run that lasted only 67 seconds. Blanton brought the crowd to its feet with a dunk.
Adam Blazek (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) drilled a three-pointer 41 seconds later and Macias hit a jumper 26 seconds later.
Outside of California (Pa.) cutting the deficit to nine points on three brief occasions, Gannon's lead remained in double digits for the remainder of the half. The Golden Knights' biggest first-half lead came at 35-19 with 3:04 showing on the clock after another 7-0 blitz. Macias started the rally again with a triple.
Tanner Furno (Columbus, Ohio/Whetstone) followed with a lay-up and a jumper. The lead eventually sat at 37-25 at the half.
The game was never in question throughout a long second half that featured 26 fouls as Cal tried to get back into the game with full-court pressure. Gannon's lead never dipped below 13 points during the final period. The Golden Knights assumed their biggest advantage of the night following a mini 6-0 run that pushed the difference to 80-56 with 1:55 to play.
Nine different Golden Knights saw at least 10 minutes of playing time and eight dented the scoreboard in a balanced offensive attack. Blanton topped all scorers on both teams with 19 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. Macias followed with 18 points and six rebounds. Furno and Blazek came off the bench to score 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Gannon shot 50.9 percent (27-53) from the field, 35.7 percent (5-14) from three-point range and 95.8 percent (23-24) from the free throw line. All nine Golden Knights who saw the floor grabbed at least two rebounds each.
Keith Lowe headlined the Cal attack with 19 points, seven steals and six assists. Mitchell Weedon added 12 points off the bench.
California (Pa.) shot 34.4 percent (21-61) from the floor, 22.2 percent (4-18) from behind the arc and 68.4 percent (13-19) from the charity stripe.
Gannon improved to 14-3 overall and 8-3 in the PSAC with the ninth victory during its last 10 games. It's the program's best 17-game record since the 2008-09 NCAA Division II Elite Eight squad was 15-2. California (Pa.) dropped to 6-9 overall and 5-6 in conference action. The Golden Knights return to action Wednesday, January 23 against rival Mercyhurst at the Hammermill Center. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
