chris clancy gary miller classic 2022
Matt Durisko
80
Winner Lake Erie LEC 2-2,0-0 G-MAC
73
Gannon Gannon 0-3,0-0 PSAC
Winner
Lake Erie LEC
2-2,0-0 G-MAC
80
Final
73
Gannon Gannon
0-3,0-0 PSAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Lake Erie LEC 32 48 80
Gannon Gannon 31 42 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Lake Erie Goes on Late Run to Hand Golden Knights 80-73 Defeat in Opening Round of Gary Miller Classic

ERIE, Pa. – Lake Erie finished the game on a 10-0 run to hand Gannon an 80-73 defeat in the first round of the 38th Annual Gary Miller Classic on Friday night at the Highmark Events Center. The loss dropped Gannon to 0-3 to start the season for the first time since 1946-47. Lake Erie evened its record at 2-2.

The Golden Knights will now face former Mideast Collegiate Conference rival Le Moyne in Saturday's consolation game at 5:30 p.m. Lake Erie will meet Winston-Salem State in the championship game at 7:30 p.m. Winston-Salem State and Le Moyne went to overtime before the Rams prevailed 83-81. Gannon had reached the finals in the previous six Gary Miller Classics.

Neither Gannon nor Lake Erie could build a lead in a game that featured 28 lead changes and nine ties. Gannon's largest lead came at four points early in the second half, while the Storm led by seven on several occasions.

Trailing by four points at 58-54 with just under ten minutes to play, Gannon pulled ahead on a Chris Clancy (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) 3-pointer and a jumper in the paint by Michael Lucarotti (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) following an offensive rebound. That left Gannon leading 59-58 with 7:57 remaining.

The teams went back-and-forth for the next four minutes before a four-point run courtesy of Ronny Raphael (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) gave the Golden Knights a 73-70 lead. The freshman guard made a pair if free throws and the converted on an up-and-under move for the three-point advantage with 2:09 remaining.

Those were the last points the Golden Knights would score as Lake Erie scored the final ten points of the game. PJ Jones' jumper pulled the Strom with a point, and after a Gannon miss Jonny Manning converted on a pair of free throws with 1:28 remaining to give Lake Erie the lead at 74-73.

Gannon missed on its ensuing possession. Jones had a shot blocked by Ali Ragab (Cairo, Egypt/Rocktop Academy), but Manning scored moments later on a driving layup to make it 76-73 with 47 seconds showing. Clancy missed a 3-pointer, and Jones made a pair of free throws with 27 seconds to play to extend the deficit to 78-73. Gannon's last possession resulted in a turnover, and Jones sealed the win for the Storm with a pair of free throws with five seconds to play.

The Golden Knights had four players in double figures, with Clancy bombing away for five 3-pointers in 12 attempts for a team-high 15 points. Lucarotti, redshirt freshman who was at Youngstown State last year, added a season-high 14 points with five rebounds.

Ragab had his second straight double-double, once again totaling 12 points and 10 rebounds, six on the offensive end. The 7'0" sophomore added a pair of blocks. Raphael also had a season-high 12 points along with four assists. Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) had 10 rebounds, his second straight game in double digits, but Gannon's leading scorer managed just seven points.

Jones and Manning combined for 43 points for Lake Erie. Jones led all scorers with 22 points, making 3-of-6 3-pointers and 7-of-10 free throws. Manning added 21 points and a team-high seven rebounds, going 11-of-12 at the charity stripe. Jordan Burton added 11 points.

Gannon shot 40.0 percent from the floor (26-of-65), while holding Lake Erie to 38.5 percent (25-of-65). The Golden Knights made 7-of-26 3-pointers while the Storm came in at 8-of-33. Lake Erie won the game at the line, converting 22-of-26 while Gannon was 14-of-20.

With Mims and Ragab in double figures, Gannon outrebounded Lake Erie 46-38. The Golden Knights committed 18 turnovers and the Storm 11.
 
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