Chris Clancy vs. UPJ
Bryce Dolak
73
Winner Pitt.-Johnstown Pitt-J 17-5,13-3 PSAC
66
Gannon Gannon 2-19,2-15 PSAC
Winner
Pitt.-Johnstown Pitt-J
17-5,13-3 PSAC
73
Final
66
Gannon Gannon
2-19,2-15 PSAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Pitt.-Johnstown Pitt-J 37 36 73
Gannon Gannon 42 24 66

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

Clancy Drains Seven 3-Pointers but UPJ Rallies to Defeat Golden Knights

ERIE, Pa. – Chris Clancy (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) bombed away for 22 points and Demetrius Mims (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Polytechnic Institute) used a variety of spinning moves to add 18 points but Pitt-Johnstown used a late run to hand Gannon a 73-66 loss on Monday night at the Highmark Events Center.

UPJ came in tied with Mercyhurst for second place in the PSAC West and is now 13-3 in league play and 17-5 overall while winning for the sixth straight time. The loss sends Gannon to 2-19 overall and 2-15 in the PSAC West as the Golden Knights suffered another heartbreaking setback.

A back-and-forth first half featured seven lead changes and six ties. The Golden Knights closed on an 8-2 run to head to the locker room with a 42-37 lead. They would extend that margin to 11 points at 54-43 with 13:38 left with a run of seven straight points, including Clancy's seventh 3-pointer of the night.

From that point on UPJ outscored Gannon 30-12, ending the game on a 13-3 run. The Mountain Cats eventually regained the lead at 58-57 with 7:26 left, and over the next few minutes the lead changed hands five times.

Josh Omojafo's (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf) layup off a turnover with just under five minutes remaining gave Gannon a 63-60 advantage. That's when the decisive 13-3 run began. Omojafo's 3-point play pulled the Golden Knights to within 67-66 with 1:32 left, but Ryan Smith followed with a layup for UPJ with a minute left. After a timeout, Clancy misfired on a three Andrew Shull canned two free throws with 21 seconds to play.

Clancy was incredible in defeat. The 6'2" redshirt sophomore made a career-high seven 3-pointers on 12 attempts, several closer to the half court line than the 3-point arc. The 22 points were his second 20-point effort in the last three games, with 18 coming in the first half. He added six rebounds and a pair assists.

Mims, a 6'7" redshirt junior, scored in double figures for the 14th straight game while recording his third double-double of the season. He ended the night with 18 and 10 rebounds along with three steals.

Gannon had four players in double figures as the quartet combined for 62 of Gannon's 66 points. Freshmen Berkay Yilmaz (Istanbul, Turkey/Fenerbahce Beko) and Omojafo each scored 11 points, a career-high for Yilmaz. He added four assists.

UPJ had three players in double digits with Smith leading the way with 19 and Shull adding 18. John Paul Kromka added 16 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots.

After shooting 50.0 percent (14-of-28) from the floor in the first half the Golden Knights were at just 32.1 percent (9-of-28) in the final 20 minutes to end the game at 41.1 percent (23-of-56). UPJ actually had an off shooting night after coming in ranked seventh in NCAA Division II in field goal percentage and first in 3-point field goal percentage. The Mountain Cats ended at 50.0 percent (27-of-54) from the floor while both teams ended at 9-of-22 on 3-pointers. Gannon was 11-of-14 at the line while UPJ was 10-of-12.

UPJ won the rebound battle and Gannon the turnover battle. The Mountain Cats had a 35-29 edge on the glass, and while UPJ had 13 turnovers to 11 for Gannon, the Golden Knights held a 22-7 advantage in points off turnovers.

Gannon plays for the third time in five days on Wednesday, February 8 as they travel to California (Pa.) for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff against the Vulcans.
 
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