WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson College men's basketball team owned an eight-point halftime lead, but a cold-shooting second half led to a 73-66 defeat to Geneva on Wednesday evening at the Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
 
The Presidents (1-1) shot 16-of-31 (51.6 percent) from the field in the first half and connected on four threes as W&J owned a 38-30 advantage over the game's first 20 minutes. However, Geneva (2-1) outscored W&J 43-28 in the second as the Golden Tornadoes shot 16-of-29 (55.2 percent) from the field and made their first four threes of the second half.
 
W&J struggled in the second half, shooting on 1-of-13 (7.7 percent) three-pointers and went five-of-13 (38.5) from the free throw line.
 
Geneva erased W&J's 38-30 lead within the first five minutes of the second half as the Golden Tornadoes opened the second half with a 15-4 run to take a 45-42 lead with 15:17 left in regulation. The Golden Tornadoes drained three threes and three free throws in their opening flurry.
 
The Presidents responded with baskets from Cameron Seemann (Loveland, Ohio/Archbishop Moeller) and Jake Livingston (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel) to tie the game at 46.
 
Geneva scored the next nine points to grab the Golden Tornadoes' largest lead (55-46) with 11:44 to play in the second half.
 
The Presidents whittled the Geneva advantage down to one score five times in the final 10 minutes but were never able to tie the game or take the lead.
 
Nicholas Campalong (Sewickley, Pa./Ambridge) scored three points in a 7-0 run that brought W&J within two, 55-53 with nine minutes left, but Geneva's Lyle Tipton knocked down a three as the game's next basket.
 
Livingston converted W&J's only three of the second half with 4:42 remaining to cut the deficit to 64-62. Kyran Mitchell (Reading, Pa./Berks Catholic) made a pair of free throws to bring the score to 65-64 with four minutes to play.
 
Down 67-64 with under two minutes to play, W&J had two good looks from three on the same possession that didn't fall. Mitchell's layup with 1:15 left trimmed the Geneva lead to one (67-66).
 
Out of a timeout, Tipton converted a three-point play to put Geneva up four and the Presidents were unable to get back within a single possession the rest of the way.
 
In the first half, the Presidents scored eight of the game's first 10 points as Livingston converted a pair of layups, Mitchell made a pair of free throws and Seemann knocked down a jumper. Geneva got within four twice in the first seven minutes after baskets from Matt Veynovich.
 
Dirk Daniels (Phillipsburg, N.J./Blair Academy) stole a pass and went the length of the court for his first collegiate basket to put the Presidents ahead 17-9 with 11:20 to go in the first half.
 
A seven-point string with baskets from Mitchell, Okikiola Agbale (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler) and Seemann pushed W&J ahead 28-15 with five minutes remaining the half. Geneva responded with a 13-4 stretch fueled by Tipton to claw back within four (32-28) with two minutes to play in the first half.
 
W&J responded with a pair of threes in the final 91 seconds of the half with AJ Blue (Kensington, Md./Sidwell Friends (D.C.)) and Zach Queen (Jeannette, Pa./Hempfield Area) connecting from deep. Geneva's Joel Stutz converted a buzzer-beating jumper to send the teams to halftime with W&J leading 38-30.
 
Geneva finished the game 27-of-54 (50.0 percent) from the field and 7-of-14 (50.0 percent) from three. W&J shot 27-of-59 from the floor and 5-of-25 (20.0 percent) from three.
 
Mitchell led the Presidents with a career-best 17 points, along with four assists, three steals and three rebounds. Livingston poured in 15 points on seven-of-nine shooting and had seven rebounds. Seemann had 10 points. Queen had a game-high six assists.
 
Geneva was led by Tipton's 28 points and nine rebounds. Stutz added 17 points.
 
W&J heads to 3-0 Westminster on Saturday for a 1:30 tip-off.