josh omojafo dunk
Josh Omojafo dunks for two of his 20 points.
71
Edinboro EU 5-14,3-10 PSAC
81
Winner Gannon Gannon 2-16,2-12 PSAC
Edinboro EU
5-14,3-10 PSAC
71
Final
81
Gannon Gannon
2-16,2-12 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Edinboro EU 33 38 71
Gannon Gannon 44 37 81

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

Mims, Omojafo Score 20 Points Apiece as Gannon Defeats Edinboro 81-71

ERIE, Pa. – Gannon won its second game this week on Saturday afternoon behind the 20-point efforts of Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) and Josh Omojafo (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf). In the 115th meeting with Edinboro the Golden Knights led almost from start to finish while posting an 81-71 win over the Fighting Scots. The 81 points is a season high.

Gannon is now 2-16 and 2-12 in the PSAC West, while Edinboro is 5-14 and 3-11 in league play. The Golden Knights picked up their first win at home in front of a Hall of Fame Day crowd.

Mims scored in double figures for the 11th straight game, and the 6'6" redshirt junior has now had five games of 20-or-more points this season, including three of the last four games. He made 8-of-13 field goals and was 4-of-8 at the line, adding four rebounds and three steals.

Omojawo, a 6'5" freshman guard, reached the 20-point plateau for the second time this week after previously scoring 20 points on Monday at Clarion. He made 6-of-9 field goals and was a perfect 8-for-8 at the line.

Zach Kent (Magnolia, Del./Blair Academy (N.J.)) was a third Golden Knight in double digits. Oddly enough, the 6'10" transfer from Delaware State scored 13 of Gannon's first 23 points but would not score again. He had a team-high seven rebounds and blocked two shots.

Freshman Berkay Yilmaz (Istanbul, Turkey/Fenerbahce Beko) started his seventh straight game at point guard and contributed a season-high eight points, making all three of his field goal attempts and both of his free throws. He added five assists and two steals with just one turnover.

Chris Clancy (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) hit a pair of 3-pointers also had eight points as he works his way back from an injury. Redshirt freshman Thomas Whitley (Laurel, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) was a third Golden Knight with eight points, adding three steals. First-year players accounted for 40 of Gannon's season-high 81 points.

Gannon shot 51.0 percent (26-of-51) from the floor for the second straight game and third time this season. The Golden Knights were 5-of-17 from beyond the arc and 24-of-31 at the line. Edinboro shot 42.2 percent (27-of-64), including 6-of-23 on 3-pointers, and was 11-of-17 at the line.

The Fighting Scots controlled the glass with 41 rebounds, 19 on the offensive end, compared to 29 for Gannon. It led to a 21-8 advantage in second chance points, but Gannon made up for it with a 23-10 edge in points off turnovers. Gannon forced 19 turnovers while committing 13.

Gannon would jump out to a 44-33 lead at the half. The game featured six lead changes and a pair of ties, but Edinboro never led by more than two points, that coming on two occasions midway through the half.

The second two-point deficit came at 22-20 with 7:48 left, and eight straight points gave the Golden Knights the lead for good. Kent's 3-point play put Gannon on top at 23-22, with Mims following with a 3-pointers. Clancy drained a three for a 28-22 lead with 6:31 left.

Edinboro would pull to within two points but Gannon followed with a 9-2 run late in the half. Mims scored five of the nine points. The lead ballooned to 13 points when Omojafo was fouled on a 3-point attempts and made all three free throws for a 44-31 lead before Jack Gallagher's driving layup at the buzzer made it 44-33.

The Fighting Scots closed the gap to seven points at 46-39 early in the second half, but following a timeout by head coach Kelvin Jefferson, the Golden Knights outscored Edinboro 10-2 for a 56-41 margin with 14:56 remaining. Whitley opened the stretch with a 3-point play, then drained a 3-pointer from the baseline following an Edinboro basket. A Mims steal and emphatic slam and a jumper by Mims finished the burst.

Gannon grabbed its largest lead of the game at 66-49 with 8:35 remaining, and Edinboro pulled no closer than nine points on two occasions in the final minute plus.

The Golden Knights conclude a three-game homestand on Wednesday, February 1 as the second half of PSAC divisional play begins. They host Slippery Rock at 7:30 p.m. at the Highmark Events Center.
 
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