CRESSON, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball team won their fifth consecutive game after defeating Mount Aloysius 61-52 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) action Saturday afternoon.
Three players scored in double figures to lead the Lions (6-1, 3-0 AMCC) to victory.
The program's lone senior Connor McLaughlin (Ashtabula, OH/Edgewood) scored a season-high 17 points and brought down three rebounds off the bench.
Junior guard Andy Niland (Fairview, PA/Fairview) dropped 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from behind the arc, extending his double-digit point performance to five straight games. Niland also added six rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Dan Wanker (Pittsburgh, PA/South Park) scored 12 points and grabbed seven boards.
The first half was an evenly matched battle between both teams, each team trading buckets back and forth. In the closing minutes of the half, with the help of Wanker and McLaughlin, Behrend put together a quick 7-0 run to break the tie and give them a 31-24 lead heading into the locker room.
The Lions shot 37.5 percent in the first half, just barely outshooting the Mounties (1-5, 1-2 AMCC) 33.3 percent.
As the second half was underway, the game continued with the same result as the first. Basket after basket, the lead did not grow larger than seven. It wasn't until a Mike Fischer (Wexford, PA/North Allegheny) layup that led to an 8-0 run by the Lions, extending the score to 52-41 with 6:44 remaining.
Mount Aloysius tried mounting a comeback of its own, bringing the game within five points with just over one minute left in the game. However, it was not enough to surpass the late foul shooting and Behrend's fifth ranked defense.
The Lions shot 92.3 percent from the charity stripe and out-rebounded the Mounties 36-28 in the game.
Behrend looks to remain undefeated in conference play when they host Pitt-Greensburg on Sunday December 17. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.