WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson men's basketball team had four players score in double figures but saw its desperation comeback effort fall short in an 85-80 loss to visiting Chatham University in a Presidents' Athletic Conference game Wednesday evening at Salvitti Family Gymnasium. 

The loss drops W&J to 7-2 in PAC play and 12-4 overall. The win gives Chatham sole possession of first place for the time being with a 4-1 league mark and a 9-1 record overall. The two teams entered the game as the only two squads with just a single loss in conference play. 

Chatham's three-point shooting played a critical role in the victory, as the visitors connected on 12-of-30 attempts from beyond the arc. Additionally, the Cougars drained 15-of-19 free throw attempts. W&J missed 10 free throws, as the home team converted just 17-of-27 attempts at the charity stripe. W&J held advantages in points off turnovers (21-13), second chance points (16-8) and bench points (22-12). 

Nick Gearhart (Huntingdon, Pa./Huntingdon) led the Presidents with 18 points, which included a 3-of-5 effort from behind the three-point line.

Kyran Mitchell (Reading,Pa./Berks Catholic) finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds to collect his PAC-leading eighth double-double of the season. J.R. Mazza (Bridgeport, W.VA./University) recorded 15 points while Kaden DiVito (Coraopolis, Pa./Cornell) added 10 points off of the bench. 

The Cougars came out firing, registering back-to-back threes in the opening minutes of play to build an early lead. Gearhart drained a three-point field goal to give W&J its first lead of the game, a 13-11 edge, with 12:04 remaining in the first half. A few minutes later, three consecutive field goals by Gearhart, extended the Presidents lead to 20-14. The lead reached as many as 11 (25-14) when Isaiah Langston (Coraopolis, Pa./Cornell) found the net from beyond the arc at the 8:11 mark. 

Momentum seemed to turn in Chatham's direction when Mitchell was charged with his second foul with 6:11 to play in the first half. The Cougars closed the first half on a 13-2 run as the Presidents' top player was out of the game. A jumper by Marcos Cintron at the 1:06 mark allowed the Cougars to carry a 34-29 advantage into the break.

Chatham matched W&J with 51 points apiece during a high-scoring second half. The 51 points marked the highest scoring half this season for the Cougars. 

The Cougars extended their lead to double digits seven separate times in the second half. Ben Pollock gave Chatham its biggest lead at 16 points when he converted a layup to give the Cougars a 75-59 lead with 4:15 to play. W&J seemingly came to life in the final minutes, as they were making shots and turning over Chatham with its full-court pressure defense. 

Back-to-back three-point field goals by Gearhart and Mazza trimmed W&J's deficit to 80-73 at the 2:54 mark. Another steal and layup by DiVito brought W&J within five and forced a Chatham timeout with 2:46 to play. Mitchell accounted for the next three points and his steal and layup cut Chatham's lead to 80-78 with just inside a minute to play. 

Cintron put the game away with a back-breaking three-pointer that came with just 23 seconds to play. 

Chatham was led by Potter who scored a game-high 24 points. Cintron added 19 points while Pollock recorded a double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Pollock added five blocks as he was a force on the glass throughout the game. 

W&J welcomes Westminster to Salvitti Family Gymnasium on Saturday, Jan. 22. The game starts the second half of the PAC schedule for the Presidents. Tip off is scheduled for 3 p.m.

No external fans are allowed to attend the game. Only W&J students are permitted to attend the PAC doubleheader Saturday.