PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball fell to La Roche 68-48 Wednesday afternoon, ending their undefeated Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) record.
The Lions (13-3, 8-1 AMCC) struggled to find offense in this conference game of the week, shooting 37.3 percent from the field, and connecting on only 8-of-25 three pointers.
Derrick Clark (Erie, PA/Central Tech) was the lone Lion to hit double-figures, shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc for a career-high 14 points.
There was not much hope for Behrend early in this match. With the help of Trell Thomas, The Redhawks (11-5, 8-1 AMCC) opened up the game on a 14-0 run in the first seven minutes, keeping the Lions scoreless.
It wasn't until the 12:07 mark where forward Connor McLaughlin (Ashtabula, OH/Edgewood) was able to convert on a jump shot to give Behrend its first points of the game.
La Roche continued to add to their lead throughout the first half, reaching an 18-point advantage heading into the locker, outscoring the Lions 39-21.
Trell Thomas and Arnes Bajgora each scored 14 points in the half to help the Redhawks record a 53.3 shooting percent, while the Lions were held to only 39.1 percent from the field.
From that point on, the Redhawks held a double-digit lead and prevented Behrend from making any type of run to get them back into the game.
Clark put up all 14 points in the second half, but his efforts were not enough to overcome to Redhawks fire power.
Behrend beat La Roche on the boards, pulling down 32 rebounds compared to the Redhawks 31. However, Behrend recorded a season-high 16 turnovers, and was only able to make it to the free throw line a total of three total throughout the contest, marking a season-low.
The Lions will look to shrug off the loss and get back on the winning track when they travel to Franciscan this Saturday for another AMCC matchup. The game time is set for 2 p.m.