mims
71
Gannon Gannon 12-10,9-9 PSAC
79
Winner Edinboro EU 8-15,6-11 PSAC
Gannon Gannon
12-10,9-9 PSAC
71
Final
79
Edinboro EU
8-15,6-11 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Gannon Gannon 29 42 71
Edinboro EU 41 38 79

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

Valiant Rally Comes Up Short as Gannon Drops 79-71 Decision at Edinboro

EDINBORO, Pa. – The Gannon men's basketball team staged a valiant rally but came up short on Monday night at Edinboro, dropping a 79-71 decision. The Golden Knights were denied a chance to clinch a spot in the PSAC Tournament while standing now at 12-10 overall and 9-9 in the PSAC West. Edinboro staved off elimination while moving to 8-15 and 6-11, respectively.

Four Western Division teams have clinched berths in the conference tournament – IUP, Pitt-Johnstown, Mercyhurst, and Cal. Gannon, Slippery Rock (9-8) and Edinboro are Fighting for the two remaining spots.

Gannon had almost as many players sitting in street clothes as there were suited up, with only nine players dressed. The Golden Knights were once again without second-leading scorer Ike Herster (Sharon, Pa./Kennedy Catholic), and Braden Olsen (West Linn, Ore./West Linn) was also unavailable. Olsen had averaged 19.0 ppg. over the last six games.

Edinboro came out firing and jumped to a 33-13 lead with 6:25 remaining when Cyrie Coates hit a 3-pointers. It was Edinboro's fifth 3-pointer of the night. The Fighting Scots would go on to make 11 of 20 shots from beyond the arc. Gannon, meanwhile, struggled once again on 3-pointers, going 2-for-10 after making just one on Saturday vs. Indiana(Pa.).

The Golden Knights would battle back to within 41-29 at the half thanks to a 16-8 run. Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) accounted for six points and Robertas Jonaitis (Pakruojis, Lithuania/Greater Beckley Christian School) had five.
Gannon still trailed by 15 points at 57-42 with just over 13 minutes remaining, but closed to 67-60 on an Alfonso Pickens Jr. (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) layup with 6:34 to play. Edinboro boosted the lead to 77-66 as just 98 seconds remained, but head coach Kelvin Jefferson's squad had one run left.

Ali Ragab (Cairo, Egypt/Rocktop Academy) scored off his own miss, and Mims followed with a steal and a free throw. After an Edinboro miss, Ragab once again grabbed his own miss and put it back in as the Knights closed to 77-71 with 40 seconds left. Coates halted the comeback effort with a pair of free throws, the last of his game-high 29 points.

Paul scored in double figures for the 19th time in 21 games, finishing with 19 points and three assists. Mims added 16 points and seven rebounds. Donovan Forte (Cleveland, Ohio/Garfield Heights) and Ragab each came off the bench to contribute nine points. Ragab, a seven-foot freshman, pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, his fourth game in double figures, along with blocking two shots. Jonaitis finished with seven points, six rebounds and three assists.

The trio of Coates, Dontae Robertson (19 points) and Kameron King (13) combined for 61 points. More importantly, they made 11 of 19 3-pointers.
Both teams made 29 field goals, with Gannon shooting 46.8 percent from the floor and Edinboro 48.3 percent. Gannon made 11 of 17 free throws and Edinboro 10 of 12. The Golden Knights ruled the boards, 38-30, winning the battle of the boards for the 18th time in 22 games. The Knights committed 10 turnovers and the Scots seven, but Edinboro held a 14-4 advantage in points off turnovers.

Gannon will try once again to clinch a spot in the PSAC Tournament on Wednesday, February 16, hosting Slippery Rock. Note the tipoff time of 7:00 p.m. It is the first of back-to-back games against The Rock, with the two teams meeting at SRU on Saturday, February 19.        
 
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