Tomcats Win First Postseason Game Since 2006
Matt Jackson
2/22/2011 8:46:41 PM

GREENVILLE, Pa. - The Thiel men's basketball team ended a postseason drought Tuesday at Beeghly Gymnasium, beating visiting Waynesburg by  a final score of 73-63 in the first round of the Presidents' Athletic Conference tournament. It was the first win in the playoffs for the Tomcats since a win over Washington & Jefferson in the opening round of the 2006 tournament.

With the victory, the Tomcats move on to the semifinals, where they will host fifth-seeded Thomas More on Thursday (7 p.m.). If they win that game the Tomcats will also host the championship game, scheduled for Saturday.

Devon Adams (Philadelphia, Pa., George Junior Republic) sparked the 10-point win for the top-seeded Tomcats with an overall great game of 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. In the regular season finale, he became the eighth player in school history to eclipse 1,000 points in a career. With the big game against the Yellow Jackets, he now has 1,019 points.

Including Adams, four players reached double-figures in scoring for the Tomcats. Blair Rozenblad (Youngstown, Ohio, Kennedy Catholic) had a big double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds, with the scoring being boosted by a 9-of-11 night at the foul line.

Anthony Harvey (New Castle, Pa., New Castle) also took advantage of his time at the charity stripe, going 8 of 10 from the line on his way to 16 points. Lance Randall (Canfield, Ohio, Ursuline) contributed 12 points.

Thiel crushed Waynesburg on the boards with a 46-25 advantage, which resulted in 17 second-chance points for the Tomcats and just four for the Yellow Jackets.

Jeff Young scored 14 points and grabbed eight boards to lead Waynesburg, which finishes the season with a record 6-20. Nick Herman and James Allenby added 10 points apiece.

Thiel was the heavy favorite coming into the game with a perfect 10-0 record on its home floor this season, but held a small 27-24 advantage at the break. But in the end, the Tomcats were in no real danger of losing.

Aundra Jones (Youngstown, Ohio, Kennedy Catholic) played well for the Tomcats, finishing with eight rebounds and three blocks. Ladell Trotty (Cleveland, Ohio, Lutheran East) also had a solid game as a reserve with six boards.

Thiel improves to 19-6 overall, including an 11-0 mark at Beeghly Gymnasium.