The Bearcat men's basketball team trailed throughout the first half, but put in a strong second half performance to earn a 15-point win over Washington & Jefferson on the road, 77-62.

It was all W&J in the early going, as they opened a 9-4 lead, with Tom Kromka scoring all four points for the Bearcats.  Sean Stinelli of the Presidents had the hot hand, hitting multiple three-pointers to help build a 15-point lead for the hosts, 28-13, at the 8:27 mark.
 
From there, the Bearcats slowly fought their way back.  First, Jason Capco hit a jumper, then Mike Simmons scored on a putback.  After another outside shot was missed, Kromka was there for the second chance layup.  The run continued when David Stephen's three kissed the glass and banked in.  After a foul, Kromka scored off an inbound pass to compete an 11-point SVC run, making the score 28-24.
 
After three straight free throws gave the hosts a 7-point edge, the Bearcats went back to work in the final three minutes of the half.  Josh Duda hit a three from the left corner, then Kromka scored after another rebound with 1:51 to go.  Finally, it was Kromka once again with a basket as the buzzer sounded to end the half, with the game tied, 31-31.
 
For the half, Kromka tallied 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting, with eight rebounds.
 
The teams traded points early in the second half, then Capco hit a three at the 16:35 mark to give the Bearcats their first lead of the night.  A score by Collin Neville later made it a four-point game, 40-36 in favor of SVC, but the hosts later tied the game at 48-48 near the 8-minute mark.
 
Neville and Kyle Evans then took over.  First, Neville scored off an offensive rebound, then came up with a block at the other end of the court that turned into a basket by Evans off a spin move in the paint.  After Evans scored on another field goal, he then ran his scoring streak to 8 straight points after hitting four free throws.  Stephen added a layup with just over five minutes on the clock, completing a 12-1 Bearcats run, making the score 60-49.
 
W&J then tallied four straight points to make it a 7-point game, but Evans scored yet again to make it a 62-53 game. 
 
Trailing by 11, the Presidents got a three from Stinelli, his first since the first half, at the 2:45 mark, reducing the gap to eight, 66-58, but SVC scored seven straight points, including 5 from Stephen, to put the game out of reach. 
 
Kromka led the stat sheet with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Evans added 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Stephen had 13 points and 9 boards.  Stinelli had a game-high 24 for the Presidents.

Saint Vincent is now 4-1 overall, 1-1 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference.  W&J falls to 1-4 overall, 0-1 in the PAC.

SVC returns to action at home on Saturday, December 2 at 6PM, hosting Waynesburg University.