GREENVILLE, Pa. - The Westminster (Pa.) men's basketball team won, 86-69, against Presidents' Athletic Conference foe Thiel on the road on Wednesday evening.
The Titans (4-1) bounced back from their first loss of the season, a one-point defeat at the hands of Washington & Jefferson on Saturday.
- Wednesday's men's scores | Wednesday's women's scores
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The game was Thiel's first of the season. Through Wednesday, 209 women's teams have played at least one game, as have 205 men's teams.
The Titans had five players score in double figures, led by junior Tyler James with 15 points, who also had a game-high 14 rebounds, and senior Isaac Stamatiades who dropped a team-high 18 points, while corralling 10 rebounds for his eighth-straight double-double dating back to last year (24th career).
Westminster started strong, building a 17-8 lead over Thiel (0-1) just over five minutes into the game. The Tomcats mounted a comeback, cutting the deficit to one as they trailed 24-23 with 8:40 left in the first half. Unable to take the lead, Thiel stayed within striking distance and trailed by two, 35-33 with 3:51 left. The Titans closed the half with authority, as they mounted an 11-4 run to close out the period and went into intermission with a 46-37 lead.
After Thiel collected the first two baskets of the second half to make the score 46-42, Westminster went on a 7-0 run - capped off by an and-1 by James to make the score 53-42 in favor of the Titans with 16:56 remaining. The Tomcats got the deficit to seven with 14:52 left in the game (57-50), but that would be the closest they would get, as a 16-7 run by Westminster (73-57) put the game out of reach just over seven minutes remaining.
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| Daniel Ritter was 6-for-7 from the floor for the Titans on Wednesday night. Westminster (Pa.) athletics file photo |
Along with James and Stamatiades, senior Daniel Ritter boosted the Titans with 16 points and three rebounds. Ritter shot an efficient 6-for-7 from the floor. First-year Reese Leone continued to excel with his passing, dishing out a game-high seven assists (third-straight game with seven or more assists) to go along with 12 points and a pair of rebounds. Senior Josh Hutcherson also finished in double figures with 12 points and grabbed four rebounds. First-year Andrew Clark deposited eight points, grabbed five boards and pocketed a game-high two steals. Sophomore Austin O'Hara also tacked on five points.
For the game, Westminster out-shot the Tomcats 53.1% (34-64) to 40.3% (27-67). Westminster edged Thiel on the glass (46-31) and bested the Tomcats in second chance points (21-9). The Titans also shot an impressive 44.4% (8-18) from long range and dished out 17 assists.
Westminster is next scheduled to play at home against the Grove City College Wolverines on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 1:30 p.m.