LATROBE, Pa. (Feb. 28) – Sean Kett scored 19 points and pulled down nine rebounds to help lift top-seeded Saint Vincent to a 72-66 victory over second-seeded Waynesburg and give the Bearcats their third straight Presidents' Athletic Conference title.
SVC improved to 22-6 overall with the win, while Waynesburg dropped to 18-10. The Bearcats broke a 29-29 halftime tie, eliminating the Jackets from the PAC Tournament for the third year in a row.
Waynesburg opened the scoring with a pair of free throws from Byrum Louco, taking an early 2-0 advantage. Saint Vincent responded with the next four points, as junior Pat Jones threw down a dunk off of a breakaway and Jaylon Bell scored on a put back layup after an offensive rebound.
A three-pointer by Louco pushed Waynesburg back in front at 7-5 with 16:26 to play in the first half. The teams then exchanged the three baskets, the final of which came from JC Howard and tied the contest at 9-9.
SVC regained the lead on a three-pointer by Ben Klimchock, making it 12-9 at the 14:12 mark of the half. The Bearcats gained a little separation when Klimchock connected on free throws and then another three-point field goal, making it 17-11 with 11:33 to play in the half.
A dunk by Jaylon Bell coupled with a trey by Bobby Swartwout made it 22-15 SVC, with 8:21 to play in the half. The seven-point lead was the largest by either team in the first half of play.
Waynesburg then came right back, responding with a 10-3 run to tie the game at 25-25 with 2:48 to play in the half. The teams then traded baskets, the final scoring of the half came on a layup from forward Austin Ford to make the halftime score 29-29.
The Jackets scored the first four points in the second half, giving them a 33-29 lead at the 17:54 to play in the second half. SVC responded with a 7-2 run, regaining the lead at 37-35 with 15:01 to play. Waynesburg came back with a three-point play the old fashion way from Casey Hope, to regain the lead at 38-37.
Klimchock would respond with his third three-point field goal of the contest. Senior Sean Kett then added a layup on a fast break and two Howard free throws made it 43-38 with 11:46 to play.
Casey Hope provided a lift off the bench, drilling a three-pointer to bring Waynesburg within 43-41 with 11:21 to play. After two Waynesburg free throws brought it to 46-43, the Bearcats used a 8-3 run, capped by a Jones three to make it 54-46 SVC at the 7:24 mark.
After nearly three scoreless minutes, Kett drove uncontested down the lane and slammed it home, making it 56-46 with 4:06 to play. Waynesburg banked in a three-pointer to end nearly six scoreless minutes for the Jackets, and make the score 56-49.
SVC then got a layup from Bell and an open three-pointer from Jones, making it 61-50 with 2:43 to play. Waynesburg then scored the next four points, bringing its deficit to 61-54 with 2:06 to go.
The Bearcats worked the lead back to nine points (66-57) with 1:02 remaining. Three free throws from Jacob Fleegle brought Waynesburg back within two scores, at 66-60, with 48.9 to play.
The Bearcats then closed out the game at the free throw line, as Howard made six more free throws and their last eight overall.
Kett led SVC with 19 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Jones concluded his strong PAC Tournament, chipping in 14 points. Klimchock poured in 11 points in only 13 minutes, making 3-4 three-pointers. Bell had another solid all-around game, scoring 10 points and pulling down seven rebounds.
SVC should know the status of its NCAA Tournament first-round opponent and game location on Monday, March 2, around 12:30 p.m. during the NCAA Selection Show, which will be broadcast on NCAA.com. The first and second rounds will be played on Friday-Saturday, March 6-7.