LATROBE, Pa. (Jan. 20) - Tom Kromka recorded 15 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Saint Vincent men's basketball team to a 62-46 victory over Chatham University in Presidents' Athletic Conference play at the Carey Center.
The strong effort was the 10th career double-double for Kromka, who also added three steals and two blocks to help the Bearcats past the Cougars.
After Chatham opened the scoring with the game's initial basket, the two teams would exchange scores until the visiting Cougars held an early 6-4 lead at the 14:09 mark. A free throw each from Kromka and Shemar Bennett tied the game at 6-6 with 13:50 showing on the first half clock.
David Stephen and Mike Simmons would connect on back-to-back three-pointers to give SVC its first lead at 12-6 with 11:49 left in the half. A few minutes later, a jumper by Matt D'Amico would extend the SVC lead to 18-10 with 6:45 to play in the opening half.
Chatham would answer back with eight straight points over the next minute and a half to tie the game at 18-18. On the ensuing possession, Josh Duda helped SVC regain the edge with a three-pointer, making it 21-18. Saint Vincent would tack on six of the next eight points, using a rebound and putback by Kromka to grow the lead to 27-20 with 2:55 left in the half. A pair of late free throws by Jason Capco would give SVC a 31-22 advantage at halftime.
The Cougars used a 6-2 run to start the second half to pull within five points, making the score 33-28 with 17 minutes to play. Austin Dedert would throw down a slam dunk and convert the free throw to push the SVC edge to 36-28. D'Amico would push the lead back to double digits with a jumper to make it 40-30 with 15:10 to play.
A three-plus minute scoring drought by Saint Vincent helped Chatham close the score to 40-35 with 11:32 to play. However, Saint Vincent would use a 9-2 run to take a commanding 49-37 lead with just 5:05 to play.
The run started with a Kromka layup followed by a terrific hustle play by Capco, as he saved the ball on the defensive end on a play that eventually led to a fast break layup for Kyle Evans. A three-pointer by Duda capped the run to push the SVC edge back into double figures, which the Bearcats maintained for the remainder of the contest.
Aside from Kromka's strong night, D'Amico also finished in double figures with 10 points. Evans chipped in six rebounds and three assists, while Dedert tallied a season-high four blocks.
Defensively, Saint Vincent limited Chatham to just 28.8 percent from the field, including just 3-of-15 from behind the three-point line. The Bearcats also held a 45-30 advantage in rebounding.
The win moves Saint Vincent to 11-6 overall and 8-2 in league contests. Chatham drops to 4-13 overall and 1-9 in PAC play.
Saint Vincent hosts Washington & Jefferson College in the Carey Center on Wednesday, Jan. 24. Start time is set for 7:30 p.m.