ERIE, Pa. - The Gannon men's basketball team put five players in double digits, punished Cheyney on the glass and produced its best defensive scoring effort in three seasons to post a 68-41 victory Wednesday night at Penn State Behrend's Junker Center.
Gannon's defensive performance limited Cheyney to 41 points, the lowest by an opponent since the Golden Knights defeated Lock Haven 85-35 February 18, 2012 at the Hammermill Center. It was the lowest scoring output by a Gannon opponent away from the 'Mill since a 76-41 win at Lake Erie on February 16, 2009.
Cheyney shot 22.6 percent (12-53) during the game, including an 18.5-percent (5-20) clip during the final 20 minutes. It represented the lowest shooting percentage by a Gannon opponent since Lock Haven shot 21.3 percent in the aforementioned victory during the 2011-12 campaign.
On the other end of the court, Gannon put five players in double digits for the second time this season and the first time since an 85-75 setback against Shepherd during the opening round of the Porreco Cup on December 13.
The final part of the winning trifecta came on the glass where Gannon held a dominating 52-27 edge. It was the Golden Knights' largest rebounding advantage since out-rebounding California (Pa.) 49-24 during an 83-59 victory on February 7, 2009. Gannon has out-rebounded all 14 opponents this season, including three by at least 22 boards.
Gannon answered an opening basket from Cheyney 14 seconds into the game with 11 consecutive points and never trailed again.
Girbran Smith (Nassau, Bahamas/Seton Academy), who made his first career start after playing 24 minutes in six games this season, scored five points during the run. The junior's lay-up pushed Gannon ahead 4-2 and his three-pointer gave the Golden Knights an 11-2 lead 4:04 into the contest.
Raphell Thomas-Edwards (Leicester, England/The Gateway School) also netted four points during the opening run.
The lead reached double digits midway through the first half and grew as large as 15 points after
Adam Blazek's (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) lay-up with 3:49 left in the half. The Golden Knights eventually went to the intermission with a 33-20 advantage.
Wednesday's contest was never in doubt during the final 20 minutes. Gannon opened the final stanza with back-to-back hoops from Thomas-Edwards and a free throw from Blazek to immediately bump the lead to 38-20. Cheyney never got closer than 13 points the rest of the way.
Gannon pushed the difference into the 20's with an 8-0 run midway through the half, before a
Matthew Dogan (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) triple gave the Golden Knights their largest lead of the evening at 67-40 with 2:15 remaining. The two teams traded free throws in the final 44 seconds to account for the final 68-41 score.
A'Darius Porter (Stockbridge, Ga./Woodland) led Gannon's balanced offensive performance with his second double-double with 11 points and a season-high 13 rebounds. Blazek followed with 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists while playing every minute for the fourth consecutive game.
Thomas-Edwards, Smith and
Rogerio Livramento (Central Falls, R.I. Central Falls) added 10 points each. Smith entered the game with six points and eight shot attempts during the first 13 games, before ripping off 10 points against Cheyney. Livramento was perfect from the field (3-3) and the free throw line (4-4).
C.J. Oldham (Solon, Ohio/Solon) had a quiet but strong outing with six points and eight rebounds while dishing out five assists compared to zero turnovers in 37 minutes.
Gannon shot 41.1 percent (23-56) from the field, 36.4 percent (4-11) from three-point range and 69.2 percent (18-26) from the free throw line. The Golden Knights produced a 32-10 edge in points in the paint and an 18-2 advantage in second-chance points.
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) leading scorer Deshawn Curtis was the only Wolf to reach double digits with 19 points and seven rebounds.
Cheyney shot 22.6 percent (12-53) from the floor, 25 percent (5-20) from behind the arc and 70.6 percent (12-17) from the charity stripe.
Gannon evened its record at 7-7 while snapping a season-high three-game losing streak. Cheyney dropped to 2-12 with its sixth consecutive loss. The Golden Knights return to PSAC Western Division action Saturday, January 11 at Clarion. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
