The Pitt-Bradford men's basketball team overcame a one-point halftime deficit to defeat the visiting Franciscan Barons 73-64 on Sunday, Jan. 12. Senior Brandon McClester had another stellar performance and locked in the team's first double-double of the season.

McClester finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and two assists. Sophomore Eric Matheson finished his afternoon in double figures with 15 points, four rebounds and three assists.

Pitt-Bradford (7-6, 3-3) and the Barons seemed to struggle to find any consistency on both sides of the ball in the early portion of this game. Multiple turnovers plagued both teams and with seven minutes drained off the clock, the score sat at 5-4 in favor of the Panthers.

It wasn't until there was 11:27 remaining in the first half that the offenses began to click and lanes opened up allowing points to be scored.

From that point on, the game became a chess match. The Barons would drive deep into the Panthers' territory and look to Joseph Rine to make a play off the glass. This seemed to work well for Franciscan throughout the game as Rine finished with a game-high 20 points and 12 rebounds, capping a double-double as well.

But the Panthers got in a groove of their own, due in large part to the effort and desire of McClester who refused to take no for answer on several key plays.

With six seconds remaining until the teams headed to the locker room, Matheson hit a big triple that put the Panthers down by one point, trailing 31-30 heading into the break.

Pitt-Bradford shot 38.5 percent from the field in the first half, but hit 50 percent of its three-point shots. The Panthers were 4-of-6 from the free-throw line.

Franciscan finished the first half shooting 42.9 percent from the floor, including 42.9 percent as well from behind the arc. The Barons were 4-of-5 from the line.

Franciscan (2-9, 1-5) matched the intensity that the Panthers showed in the first half by putting up the first points of the second half on a Rine layup.

The chess match continued for the first 13 minutes of the second period with each team marching down the court. With 7:05 showing on the scoreboard, Pitt-Bradford found a way to extend its lead to nine points after Matheson put one in off the glass and for the first time all game the Panthers held a comfortable lead.

However, it wasn't long before the Barons came right back with an attack of their own and cut the deficit to one point with five minutes to go.

Franciscan would not lead again for the remainder of the contest. The Panthers bounced from a small lead to large lead until the clock eventually ran out, sealing the victory for Pitt-Bradford.

"That was a much needed win for us," said head coach Britt Moore. "We really had guys step up and contribute in some big spots. We challenged a few guys after the La Roche game and they responded."

Pitt-Bradford finished its afternoon shooting 37.5 percent from the field, including 45 percent from behind the arc. The Panthers were 22-of-29 from the charity strip.

Franciscan shot 39.7 percent from the floor and 26.1 percent from three-point land. The Barons were 8-of-13 from the line.

Pitt-Bradford is back on the hardwood Wednesday, Jan. 15. The Panthers travel to Hilbert for a 6 p.m. tipoff.