MEADVILLE, Pa. – Fueled by an energetic and spirited crowd, Allegheny pieced together a terrific effort en route to a 76-70 victory over Wilmington in the championship game of the 2012 Greg Richards '08 Memorial Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday. Senior Devone McLeod and junior Ryan Stanko were named to the all-tournament team after shouldering the Gators with a pair of outstanding performances, while McLeod was also tabbed as tournament MVP.
Locked in a tight battle against a Quakers squad that appeared in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) title game last year, the Gators ripped off a 12-2 run midway through the second half before hanging on for an excellent early-season, regional win. Chris Milon and Stanko sank a pair of free throws on back-to-back possessions to ignite the game-changing run, while Stanko and DiBernardi canned consecutive three's to move in front, 62-51, with eight minutes left in regulation.
Still trailing by double figures with one minute left in the game, Wilmington forced turnovers on consecutive possessions while reducing the deficit to as few as five. Despite the late game push, the Gators made enough big plays to keep the visitors' comeback bid at bay.
Allegheny shot 55% (11-of-20) from the floor in the second half, while holding the Quakers to just a 30% (9-of-30) clip over the same stretch. Stanko was outstanding as he scored a game and season-high 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting. The third-year wing finished 5-of-9 from three-point range and for the second consecutive night set a career high in rebounds as he grabbed 12 caroms off the glass.
McLeod finished with 22 points, but more importantly, the senior co-captain was a tremendous facilitator and showed outstanding leadership all weekend. In 38 minutes of action on Saturday, he dished out a game-high eight assists, while adding two steals and four rebounds. In the first two games of the season, McLeod has totaled 13 assists while committing just one turnover.
Rookie forward Chris Milon added 10 points and six boards for the Gators, and led a much-improved effort by the Blue and Gold at the charity stripe.
Saturday's victory marked the first time that Allegheny had won its own in-season tournament since the 2001-02 campaign.
The Greg Richards '08 Memorial Tip-Off Tournament provides Allegheny with an opportunity to celebrate Greg's life and bring together those who loved him most on the eve of every basketball season. Greg, who was a four-year player on the Gators' men's basketball team, died on Feb. 21, 2012 after a battle with cancer.