CRESSON, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball team clinched the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) regular-season title with an 80-57 victory over Mt. Aloysius Saturday afternoon. The Lions (21-2, 15-1 AMCC) have won ten straight games and shot over 50 percent from the field for the fifth straight game.
Coming off an impressive 89-60 win over Medaille on Wednesday, the Lions picked up right where they left off. Zane Hackett (Brookville, PA/Brookville) notched 20 points in the victory shooting 8-for-9 from the field. Hackett took in nine rebounds and added two steals and a block.
Malquan Pullium (Erie, PA/Strong Vincent) set the tone early draining a three-pointer on the game's first possession. At the 10:34 mark in the first half, Connor McLaughlin (Ashtabula, OH/Edgewood) broke a 14 all tie with a shot from behind the arc that sparked a 10-0 run for Behrend.
After a Nolan Doyle layup for the Mounties at the 8:01 mark to stop the bleeding, the Lions went on to close out the first half outscoring Mt. Aloysius (8-15, 6-10 AMCC) 13-3 and went to the locker room with a 39-19 advantage.
Behrend scored the first five points of the second half off of a Hackett layup and a triple by Nick DeLisio (Aliquippa, PA/Central Valley) upping the lead to 25. For the remainder of the game the Lions would hold at least a 20-point lead taking the victory handily.
Four Behrend starters scored in double-figures while DeLisio finished the game with nine points off three long rangers. Pullium contributed in a variety of ways netting 12 points, three rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal.
Keith Wallace continued his strong play from Wednesday with a full stat line. Wallace chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds, six assists, three steals and a block. Rounding out the Lions starters Wes Davic (Grafton, OH/Midview) scored 10 points and hauled in eight rebounds.
Off the Behrend bench, Mike Knoll (Erie, PA/Cathedral Prep) shot 4-for-5 from the field for eight points and recorded three rebounds.
With first place in the conference locked up, the Lions will have home-court advantage throughout the AMCC playoffs and clinched a first-round bye. In addition, Behrend will host the final four teams.
The Lions draw Hilbert at home next Wednesday at 8 p.m.