BUFFALO, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball team cruised through their seventh Wednesday night game of the season, defeating D'Youville 70-51 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) for the second time this season.
The Lions (15-3, 10-1 AMCC) rallied around the three ball to capture their tenth conference win of the season. The Spartans (5-11, 2-8 AMCC) would not give Behrend a big 30-point type win like they had the first time these teams met this season, however.
Junior Mike Fischer (Wexford, PA/North Allegheny) stole the show in the rematch. Fischer buried a game-high 17 points on 50 percent shooting from the field and from behind the arc, while also dishing out seven dimes, five boards, and two steals.
For the third consecutive game, sophomore guard Derrick Clark (Erie, PA/Central Tech) scored in double figures. He recorded 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting, and added five assists in the win.
Dan Wanker (Pittsburgh, PA/South Park) was the third Lion player to notch a double-digit scoring performance. The forward scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds and three assists.
A close game early quickly broke out in favor of Behrend. The first 16 minutes was full of both teams trading baskets, not letting the Lions gain much momentum. At the 9:07 mark, Fischer drained a triple to ignite a Lion run that would give themselves a substantial cushion for the second half.
Before Fischer's three, D'Youville had just converted on a layup to tie the game at 19-all. Two threes by Fischer, a triple by Clark and another bucket by Fischer put Behrend on an 11-0 run to close out the half.
Behrend's number one ranked defense in the country held D'Youville to 28.0 percent shooting in the first half.
Despite falling late in the first half, the Spartans continued to battle until the final whistle. D'Youville's Brian Nwaekeke made a layup to cut Behrend's lead to eight with 14 left.
For just about the remainder of the contest, besides a 30 second span with seven remaining, the Lions held a solid 10-point advantage over the Spartans. Behrend topped out at a 21-point edge with 22 seconds left in the game.
The Lions won the second half by eight points, and shot 51.7 percent from the floor in the second to help pick up this double-digit victory.
Two days off and Behrend is back in action when they host Mt. Aloysius on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.