Men’s Basketball Ends Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Invite With Victory Over Canton

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – In their last action of 2024, the Penn State Behrend men's basketball was victorious by a score of 74-63 against Canton on the final day of the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Invitational Tournament, hosted by St. John Fisher Monday afternoon.

Score: Penn State Behrend 74, Canton 63
Records: Penn State Behrend (6-5), Canton (0-7­)

Key Moments:

* The game was back-and-forth to start with Behrend controlling a 17-14 advantage after the first 10 minutes
* The Lions went on a 13-3 run in the next four minutes that was capped off by a Mason Blankenberg (Ontario, NY/Wayne) layup to take a 30-17 lead
* A three-pointer by Malaki Smith in the final seconds of the first half cut the Kangaroos deficit to nine (39-30) going into the locker room
* Matthew McDonough (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) (10 points) and Tommy DiRienzo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) (nine points) tallied a team-high in scoring in the first 20 minutes
* Canton started the second half on a 10-2 run to get within one point (41-40) and force a Behrend timeout with 18:20 on the clock
* Out of the timeout, Behrend scored the next eight points to push their lead to eight (48-40)
*  Back-to-back layups by Michael Sopko (New Castle, PA/Neshannock) and Sam Petrarca (Peters Township, PA/Peters Township) extended the Lions advantage to 13 points with 10 minutes remaining
* With 4:22 left in Monday's contest, a McDonough three-pointer gave Behrend its biggest lead of the afternoon of 17 (74-57) and helped propel the team to its sixth win of the season
* DiRienzo recorded his first double-double of the season, finishing with 18 points and a season-high 10 rebounds
* McDonough delivered 17 points to go along with four assists, while freshman Nate Edwards (Girard, PA/Girard) posted a career-high 15 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field
* Blankenberg was very active for the Lions on the glass and defensive end, registering nine rebounds and a game-high three steals
* For the Kangaroos, Kevin Goode Jr. led the way with 17 points. Eli Larson chipped in 11 points to go along with a team-high seven rebounds
* For the game, Behrend shot 55.6 percent (30-for-54) from the field and outrebound the Kangaroos by 17 (36-19). The Lions also outscored Canton in second chance points (14-6) and points in the paint (42-30)

Up Next:

* Behrend returns to conference action with a matchup at Mount Aloysius on Saturday, Jan. 4 at 2 p.m.