WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson College men's basketball team won a hard-fought bout against the Allegheny Gators this evening in a Presidents' Athletic Conference showdown at the Salvitti Family Gymnasium. A last second shot by Nick Gearhart (Huntingdon, Pa./Huntingdon) was the difference as W&J pulled out a 65-63 win over Allegheny.
The win improves the Presidents to 12-4 in Presidents' Athletic Conference play and 15-6 overall. The victory helps W&J pull into a tie for first place in the PAC with Allegheny at 12-4. The loss snaps Allegheny's seven-game winning streak. The Gators are 12-4 in the PAC and 15-7 overall.
Both units came out of the gates strong in the first half as they would trade early lead changes. Allegheny was the first to pull away for a respectable period as they grew their lead to as much as nine before five minutes rolled off the clock. Once again Matt Seidl (Pittsburgh, Pa. / North Hills) entered the game for the Presidents and created an instant spark as he found his way to 17 first half points along with a 60% shooting percentage from the field (6/10) and a 75% shooting percentage from beyond the arc (3/4). The North Hills product headed the Presidents offense while Kyran Mitchell(Reading, Pa. / Berks Catholic) and company created havoc on the defensive side of the ball.
W&J would swiftly tie up the game before the half at 34 after Luke Barker nailed a half court three before the end of the half for the Gators.
Entering the second half, both teams couldn't find ways to pull away and create more than a two possession lead until the Presidents drained a flurry of threes and gritty layups in the paint paired with more defensive pressure which caused multiple steals and fastbreak opportunities. Nick Gearhart (Huntingdon, Pa. / Huntingdon) started the barrage with a deep three from beyond the arc followed by some paint points scored by Mitchell. The run was capped off by J.R. Mazza (Bridgeport, W.Va. / University) as he completed the four-point play after being fouled on his made three-point attempt. The four-point play gave the Presidents a 60-53 lead with 6:26 to play.
With 25 seconds remaining in regulation the Gators would take a one-point lead after Preston Turk hit a crucial three pointer to put the Gators up 63-62. The Presidents responded quickly as Mitchell made tireless attempts to drive to the hoop for a tough pullup jump shots but to no avail. The loose ball found a wide open Gearhart, who was able to deep bury the deep three-point shot to give W&J a two-point lead. Mitchell also made the game clinching steal after a deflection by Seidl thwarted the Gators' final possession.
Seidl led the Presidents with 21 points on the night followed up by Gearhart (12) and Mitchell (10), who each hit double figures. Michael Bigley(Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton LaSalle) finished the night with a team-high 10 rebounds.
Mitchell, who entered the night as the steals leader in all of NCAA Division III, added seven more steals Wednesday.
The Presidents won despite being out-rebounded 49-38 but took advantage of the fastbreak tonight as they scored 29 fastbreak points to Allegheny's six. W&J also held a large advantage in points off of turnovers (26-9).
W&J hosts Franciscan on Saturday, Feb. 4. Start time for Alumni Day is scheduled for 3 p.m. at the Salvitti Family Gymnasium. The Presidents won their last meeting this season with a 99-81 win over the Barons in Steubenvile on Dec. 17.