MEADVILLE, Pa. – For the second consecutive game, the Gators used a strong second half to pull away for a North Coast Athletic Conference victory, topping visiting Wittenberg 69-56 at the David V. Wise Center.

Four players scored in double-figures for the Gators (5-3, 2-0 NCAC), who broke open a 26-26 halftime tie by ending the game on an 18-5 run to keep the visiting Tigers (1-6, 0-3 NCAC) winless in conference play. 

The Gators put together their top performance of the season from behind the three-point line, connecting on 11 of 20 from long range, while they also committed a season-low eight turnovers.   The Allegheny defense was just as impressive, limiting the Tiger shooters to just 31 percent from the field (20-for-64), while blocking a season-high seven shots.

Evan Zabriski led the Gators with 24 points and nine rebounds, and was joined in double figures on the scoresheet byJosh Valentic (15 points), Evan Schweitzer (12), and Brandon Smith (10).   Conor Macomber led the Gators with six assists and three steals, while Smith blocked a game-high three shots.

Wittenberg owned the play in the opening stages of the game, opening up leads of 7-0, 13-6, and 16-8 over the first five minutes.  A three from Valentic and a jumper from Smith quickly cut the deficit to three, 16-13, but the Tigers came right back with an 8-0 run to go up 24-13 with 7:54 left in the half.

The Gators then seized control as the half wound down.  A three by Zabriski, followed by a jumper from Valentic, trimmed the deficit to 24-19 with six minutes left, before Zabriski hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 24 with just over four minutes remaining.  The sophomore then gave the Gators their first lead of the game when he converted a fast break lay up, off of a Macomber steal, to make the score 26-24  and close out a 12-0 run that spanned six minutes.  Wittenberg snapped its seven-minute scoreless streak by scoring the last bucket of the half to send the game into the intermission deadlocked at 26.

Over the opening 20 minutes of play, Wittenberg more than doubled up Allegheny on the glass, with a 23-10 rebounding advantage, including 13 offensive boards for the Tigers.  However, the Gators limited Wittenberg to just a 30 percent mark from the field (10-for-33), while Allegheny shot 45 percent from the floor, including a 5-for-9 showing from long range.

The teams traded baskets in the opening minutes of the second half, before the Gators regained control.  Tied at 31 with 16 minutes left in regulation, Allegheny scored on six of its next eight possessions, with three-pointers by Schweitzer, Macomber, Valentic, and Donte Wallette, to open up a 47-38 advantage with 10:55 remaining. Again, the Tigers answered by embarking on a 14-4 run over the next five minutes, aided by a pair of traditional three-point plays, to regain a 52-51 lead with 5:27 to go. 

The two squads would then trade baskets, before Schweitzer kick started the Gators' game-ending rally by nailing three-pointers on consecutive possessions to go up 60-54 at the two-minute mark, and it was a lead that the hosts would not relinquish.  The Tigers cut the gap to four with 1:34 left, but Allegheny scored the game's final nine points, with a monstrous dunk by Zabriski in the closing seconds putting the exclamation point on the conference victory and sealing Allegheny's first win over the Tigers since 2008.

Cody Phillipi led Wittenberg with 16 points, including a trio of three-pointers, while teammate Chad Roy added 10 points in defeat.  The Tigers, who ended the game with a 42-30 advantage in rebounding, were paced on the glass by Shane Edwards, who grabbed nine boards to go with nine points.

The Gators, who are off to their first 2-0 start in the NCAC since the 2009-10 campaign, will look for their third straight victory on Tuesday, when they host Kenyon in a 7:30 p.m. contest at the David V. Wise Center.  It marks Allegheny's final contest before a three-week respite for the semester break.