Mike Montano vs. West Liberty
Joe Mattis
88
West Liberty WL 26-7,17-3 MEC
103
Winner Gannon Gannon 31-2,20-2 PSAC
West Liberty WL
26-7,17-3 MEC
88
Final
103
Gannon Gannon
31-2,20-2 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
West Liberty WL 48 40 88
Gannon Gannon 57 46 103

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

No. 1 Seed Gannon Advances to Atlantic Regional Final with 103-88 Win over No. 4 Seed West Liberty

Six Golden Knights score in double figures, Mike Montano contributes double-double

ERIE, Pa. – Many people expected Saturday night's Atlantic Regional semifinal game between No. 1 seed Gannon and No. 4 seed West Liberty to be a track meet. In many respects it was. But what it really turned into was a 15-round heavyweight title fight.

The two teams went back and forth trading haymakers, staggering each other from time-to-time with the near-capacity crowd at Hagerty Family Events Center roaring its approval. At the end of the night those fans were treated to an incredibly entertaining contest. They were also treated to a Gannon win, as the Golden Knights outlasted West Liberty 103-88 to advance to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional final for the first time since 2009.

Gannon, the number one seed in the Atlantic Region, will now host Charleston (WV) on Tuesday, March 19 at 8:00 p.m. at Hagerty Family Events Center in the Atlantic Regional championship game with a trip to the Elite Eight at stake. Charleston hit a game-winning 3-pointer with five seconds left for a 68-67 win at No. 2 seed California (Pa.) in the other half of the Atlantic Regional.  The Golden Eagles are seeded third with a 29-4 record.

Saturday's win over West Liberty gave Gannon a school-record 31 wins as the Golden Knights improved to 31-2 with their school-record 20th straight win. Gannon also remained perfect at home, now at 19-0.

The game featured an incredible 24 lead changes along with 10 ties. A back-and-forth first half that had 16 lead changes and six ties saw Gannon pull away late for a 57-48 advantage at intermission.  The Golden Knights outscored West Liberty 14-4 after John Korte had given the Hilltoppers a 44-43 lead with 2:17 remaining.

Lyle Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Philadelphia Montgomery Christian Academy), Nigel Haughton (Bel Air, Md./South Kent) and Josh Omojafo (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean de Brebeuf) accounted for four points each in the run and Omojafo sent the crowd into a frenzy with basket just before the buzzer.

After making 8-of-17 3-pointers in the first half the Hilltoppers came out firing in the second half and quickly closed the deficit. Three straight West Liberty three's made it 59-57 just a minute-and-a-half into the second half.

Gannon was able to prevail in the later rounds, finally wearing down the Hilltoppers with their hustle. West Liberty led 84-83 with just seven minutes to play. The Hilltoppers would score just five points the rest of the way.

Derrick James' (Columbus, Ohio/Canal Winchester) jumper in the paint at the 6:33 mark was a body punch to the Hilltoppers as it gave gave Gannon the lead for good at 85-84 triggered a 9-0 run as Gannon pulled away at 92-84 with 4:29 left.

Zachary Hobbs (Gilbert, Ariz./Mesa) made a pair of free throws and a Mike Montano (Alexandria, Va./Thomas Edison) steal led to a Nathan Schneider (Kersey, Pa./St. Marys Area) layup. Nathan Schneider (Kersey, Pa./St. Marys Area) added a free throw and Omojafo capped the run with a pair of free throws.

Two Korte free throws interrupted the run as West Liberty scored for the first time in almost three minutes. Gannon then delivered the knockout punch with seven straight points for a 13-point lead at 99-86 with just 2:11 remaining. Montano and Omojafo scored on layups, Schneider made 1-of-2 free throws and Omojafo's layup left Gannon a point shy of 100.

Two Christian Montague free throws made it 99-88 with 1:52 left. This would be the last points for West Liberty. Haughton and Montano each made 1-of-2 free throws, with Haughton turning the scoreboard to 100 for the 16th time with free throw.
Six Golden Knights scored in double figures led by Tipton's 17 points. He was 6-of-7 at the line. Omojafo sliced his way to 16 points and James contributed 15 points, five assists and three steals.

Freshman Montano had 14 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double. Nathan Schneider (Kersey, Pa./St. Marys Area) added 13 points off the bench making 6-of-8 field goals. Haughton had 10 points, eight rebounds and a pair of steals.

West Liberty had four players reach double figures led by John Korte with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Chaz Hinds added 17 points.

Both teams ended the night shooting 50.0 percent from the floor, Gannon showing a 36-of-72 figure while West Liberty was 31-of-62. The Hilltoppers put on an incredible shooting display making 16-of-47 3-pointers while Gannon was 6-of-17 from beyond the arc. Gannon made 25-of-36 free throws compared to 10-of-15 for WLU. After a slow start the smaller Golden Knights outrebounded West Liberty 42-35. Gannon committed just six turnovers compared to 19 for the Hilltoppers.

Ganon outscored West Liberty 24-6 on points off turnovers and held a 31-14 edge in fast break points.     
 
Print Friendly Version