CLARION, Pa. -
Girbran Smith's (Nassau, Bahamas/Seton Academy) career-high 15 points and another superb defensive performance enabled the Gannon men's basketball team to defeat Clarion 60-45 Saturday night at the Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium.
Three days after knocking off Cheyney 68-41, Gannon held its second consecutive opponent to 45 points or less. It marks the first time the Golden Knights have accomplished that feat since the 1961-62 campaign when they defeated Pikesville 73-44 (Dec. 7, 1961) and St. Vincent 61-37 (Dec. 9, 1961).
Smith was the story on the offensive end of the court. The junior scored a career-high 15 points to go along with seven rebounds during his second career start. He has scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds during the last two games after producing six points and one rebound during the first 13 contests of the season.
Gannon rode the back of an intense defensive effort while pulling away during the first half. Leading 13-10 midway through the opening stanza, the Golden Knights ripped off 13 consecutive points.
Raphell Thomas-Edwards (Leicester, England/The Gateway School) and
C.J. Oldham (Solon, Ohio/Solon) scored four points each during the run.
Rogerio Livramento's (Central Falls, R.I./Central Falls) free throw capped the blitz, giving Gannon a 26-10 lead with 4:07 left in the half.
The defensive unit held Clarion scoreless for six minutes and 36 seconds until a pair of free throws from DeMarius Miller snapped the 13-0 run. In all, the Golden Eagles went seven minutes and 54 seconds without a field goal before Miller's dunk at the two-minute mark. The two squads traded baskets during the final 42 seconds as Gannon went to the break with a 30-17 lead.
The second half was played on more even terms with Gannon out-scoring Clarion 30-28 during the final 20 minutes. The Golden Eagles did climb within 33-29 after an opening 12-3 run.
But Gannon regained control with its defense once again, getting three straight baskets to push the lead back into double digits. The Golden Knights held Clarion without a point for 5:09 and without a field goal for 6:25 to assume the upper hand.
Gannon held a double-digit lead for the final 8:07 outside of a mere 18 seconds. Six consecutive free throws during the final two minutes gave the Golden Knights their biggest lead of the evening at 60-43 with 59 ticks remaining, before the final horn put a 60-45 victory in the books.
Smith led both sides with 15 points, hitting 5-of-10 shots and 4-of-4 free throws. Oldham had almost identical numbers with 12 points and eight rebounds.
Matthew Dogan (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) completed the trio of double-digit scorers with 11 markers.
Gannon shot 41.5 percent (22-53) from the field, including a 54.2-percent (13-24) clip during the first half. The Golden Knights shot 40 percent (4-10) from three-point range and 70.6 percent (12-17) from the free throw line. The squad out-rebounded Clarion 39-29 and has now out-rebounded all 15 opponents this season.
B.J. Andrews topped the Clarion scorers with 15 points. Miller added 14 points while Aaron Johnson cleaned the glass with 11 of the Golden Eagles' 29 boards.
Clarion shot 30.6 percent (15-49) from the floor, 23.5 percent (4-17) from behind the arc and 84.6 percent (11-13) from the charity stripe.
Gannon improved to 8-7 overall and 3-2 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division with its second consecutive victory. The Golden Knights defeated Clarion for the eighth consecutive time overall and fourth straight time at Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium to increase their lead in the all-time series to 31-12. The Golden Eagles dropped to 2-10 overall and remained winless in PSAC West play at 0-4 with their seventh consecutive setback.
Head coach
John T. Reilly's club returns to the Hammermill Center for the first time in 28 days Wednesday, January 15 against Indiana (Pa.). Leaders of the PSAC Western Division, the Crimson Hawks are ranked sixth in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25 Poll. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
