Gannon's Thomas Whitley takes a shot against California.
Jeff Kirik
83
Winner Cal U (PA) CUP 7-8,4-5 PSAC
66
Gannon Gannon 0-13,0-9 PSAC
Winner
Cal U (PA) CUP
7-8,4-5 PSAC
83
Final
66
Gannon Gannon
0-13,0-9 PSAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Cal U (PA) CUP 29 54 83
Gannon Gannon 27 39 66

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

Cal (Pa.) Uses Big Second Half to Hold Off Golden Knights

ERIE, Pa. – Gannon had three players score in double figures but California (Pa.)'s Jermaine Hall, Jr. got red hot in the second half to lead the Vulcans to an 83-66 win at Highmark Events Center on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Knights are now 0-13 and 0-9 in PSAC action while Cal improved to 7-8 and 4-5, respectively.

Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) led the Golden Knights in scoring for the seventh time this season with 16 points, while Zach Kent (Magnolia, Del./Blair Academy (N.J.)) added 12 and Ronny Raphael (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) 11. Mims made 6-of-12 field goals and also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds. Redshirt freshman Thomas Whitley (Laurel, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) gathered in seven boards, one off his season high.
Hall drained 7-of-10 3-pointers to finish with 25 points and led the Vulcans with eight rebounds. He made all five of his shots from beyond the arc in the second half to account for all 15 of his points.

Keith Palek III added 23 points and Cam Polak finished with 12 points. Donald Whitehead, jr., the sister of Gannon women's assistant basketball coach, chipped in with nine points, six rebounds and six assists.

Gannon ended the afternoon shooting 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor, with a 5-of-19 performance on 3-pointers, and made 9-of-13 free throws. The Gannon defense limited a Cal team that came in as one of the top scoring teams in the PSAC at 81.8 ppg. to 38.7 percent (12-of-31) in the first half, but the Vulcans sizzled in the second half at 57.7 percent (15-of-26). They ended the day shooting 47.4 percent (27-of-57). The big difference came from the 3-point arc, as Cal made 12-of-28 3-pointers. The Vulcans made 17-of-20 free throws. 

Cal gained a slight advantage on the glass at 37-35. Both teams were guilty of 17 turnovers.

The two teams battled on even terms over the first 20 minutes, with five lead changes and a tie. The Vulcans would head to intermission with a narrow 29-27 when DJ Slaughter hit a short jumper with a second left on the clock.

The second half started out well for the Golden Knights. Trailing 37-34, they went on a 7-0 run to grab a 41-37 lead with 15:53 remaining. Josh Omojafo (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf) started the run with a rebound basket, and the freshman followed with a 3-pointer following a Cal turnover. Another Cal turnover led to a Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) jumper and the four-point lead.

Following a media timeout, Gannon and Cal exchanged baskets before the Vulcans went on a 14-0 run to take control of the contest. Palek accounted for nine of the 13 points. Gannon was unable to seriously challenge the Vulcans the rest of the way.  Cal ended up outscoring Gannon 54-39 over the final twenty minutes. 

Gannon wraps up a three-game homestand on Wednesday, January 18 hosting Millersville. Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m., with the Golden Knight playing their final PSAC crossover game before finishing the season with 12 straight games vs. Western Division foes.
 
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