Cenker Evran shoots a free throw against Edinboro.
Jeff Kirik
78
Gannon Gannon 3-22,3-18 PSAC
83
Winner Edinboro EU 6-20,4-16 PSAC
Gannon Gannon
3-22,3-18 PSAC
78
Final
83
Edinboro EU
6-20,4-16 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Gannon Gannon 35 43 78
Edinboro EU 40 43 83

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

Gannon Pounds It Inside but Unable to Overcome Edinboro's 3-Point Barrage

EDINBORO, Pa. – Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) continued his inspired play and freshman Cenker Evran (Adana, Turkey/Turk Telekom) enjoyed the finest game of his young career but Gannon was unable to overcome an incredible night from beyond the arc by Edinboro while losing 83-78 on Wednesday night at McComb Fieldhouse.

Gannon and Edinboro split the season series after the Golden Knights claimed the first meeting 81-71. Gannon is 3-22 and 3-18 in the PSAC West while Edinboro snapped a nine-game losing skid to improve to 6-20 and 4-17, respectively.

As has been the case most of the year, Gannon was missing several players due to injuries and they staged a spirited comeback only to come up short. The Golden Knights had to play without their lone remaining consistent 3-point threat, as Chris Clancy (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) missed his second straight game.

Edinboro would enjoy a huge advantage from beyond the 3-point arc, as the Fighting Scots made 13-of-29 3-pointers while Gannon was 3-of-10. Seven different Fighting Scots made trifectas.

Earlier in the week Mims was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Week after scoring a season-high 28 points at Seton Hill. The 6'6" redshirt junior dropped in a game-high 25 points on Wednesday, his 18th straight game in double figures and his eighth game of 20-or-more points. He made 11-of-21 field goals along with three free throws, adding five rebounds and five assists.

Mims was one of four Golden Knights in double figures as the quartet accounted for all but six of Gannon's points. Zach Kent (Magnolia, Del./Blair Academy (N.J.)) and Evran both had double-doubles. Evran, a 6'8" freshman from Turkey, enjoyed his finest game after sitting out the Seton Hill game with an injury. He made 8-of-11 field goals and 2-of-4 field goals for 18 points, adding 13 rebounds. Nine of his boards came on the offensive glass. He added three assists.

Kent registered his second straight double-double with 18 points and 10 boards, adding two blocked shots. The 6'10" redshirt senior was Gannon's top 3-point threat with two in four attempts. Josh Omojafo (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf) added 11 points along with six boards.

With Mims scoring nine points in a row at one point Gannon jumped out to a 17-4 lead. Edinboro answered with a 25-12 burst to tied the score at 29-29. It was the only time the game was tied all night, and the Fighting Scots took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Rashon Barron. Edinboro led 40-35 at the half.

After scoring the final two points in the first half Edinboro opened the second half with the first six points to go ahead 46-35. A 10-0 run minutes later pulled the Golden Knights to within 51-49 as Kent and Omojafo scored four points apiece.

Edinboro responded with a 12-1 run to boost the lead back to 63-50 with just under ten minutes remaining. The lead would grow to as many as 17 points at 76-59 with 4:54 remaining.

The Golden Knights weren't done, however. Over the next three-and-a-half minutes Gannon outscored Edinboro 13-2 to pull to within 78-72 with 1:15 left. They scored the final nine points on a Kent three, a Mims free throw, a 3-point play by Evran, and a pair of Kent free throws. Gannon eventually pulled to within 81-78 on an Evran tip with six seconds left, but Naim Miller's two free throws clinched the win for the Fighting Scots.

Gannon ended the night shooting 44.0 percent (33-of-75) while Edinboro was at 44.6 percent (29-of-55). Gannon made 9-of-18 free throws and Edinboro 12-of-21.
Like Gannon, Edinboro featured a pair of double-doubles as Dominique Keyes had 18 points and 17 rebounds and Kierell Green totaled 14 points and 11 boards. Keyes also pulled down 17 rebounds in the first meeting. Despite that the Golden Knights outrebounded Edinboro 48-40, with 20 offensive boards. Gannon outscored Edinboro 50-26 in the paint, still not enough to overcome the 3-point barrage by Edinboro.   

Gannon concludes the 2022-23 campaign on Saturday, February 25 hosting another local rival, Mercyhurst. The Lakers are ranked 16th in the latest NABC Division II Top 25 and come in with a 21-4 record after and 84-62 win at Seton Hill on Wednesday. Tipoff at the Highmark Events Center is 3:00 p.m. and will be preceded by Senior Day festivities.
 
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