MEADVILLE, Pa. -- The Allegheny College men's basketball team defended its home court at James H. Mullen, Jr. Arena with a strong finish during Saturday's 61-54 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) win over Waynesburg University.

The Gators (4-6, 3-3 PAC) trailed by two at halftime, 31-29, and by as many as seven points, 43-36, early in the second half. But Allegheny battled back and used a 9-1 run over the next four-and-a-half minutes to propel itself to the come-from-behind victory over the Yellow Jackets (4-5, 2-4 PAC).

Isaiah Portis (Medina, Ohio/Norwayne) made several key plays during Allegheny's rally. He scored two points to trim the deficit to 44-41, and following a layup by Zion Barksdale (Meadville, Pa./Cathedral Prep), he made a heads-up defensive play to intercept a back-court pass. Portis' ensuing layup gave the Gators their first lead of the second half at 45-44 with just under 12 minutes to play.

The two sides traded buckets over the next several minutes before a scoreless drought saw neither side produce a point for nearly four minutes. Jayson Perry (Tampa, Fla./Sickles) contributed to the gritty defensive effort with a crucial block at the 6:43 mark, denying Antone Baker on what almost resulted in a wide-open look underneath the basket.

Luke Barker (New Castle, Pa./Struthers (Ohio)) netted four consecutive points that sprung the Gators ahead, 53-50, but Waynesburg's Jordan McLoyd buried a 3-pointer that just beat the shot clock to even the score on the next possession. Barker followed up with the go-ahead field goal inside the final minute and made all four of his foul shots inside the last 30 seconds to help seal the comeback.

Inside the Box Score

• Both teams finished with 22 buckets on 54 attempts, resulting in a 40.7 field-goal percentage.
• Allegheny shot 80.0% (12-of-15) from the charity stripe, whereas Waynesburg made only 6-of-14 (42.9%) of its foul shots.
• The Yellow Jackets won the battle on the boards, 39-to-29.
• The Gators finished with more assists (7-to-4), steals (11-to-9), and blocks (5-to-3).
• Barker led all players with 24 points after shooting 7-of-12 (58.3%) overall and 9-of-10 (90.0%) from the foul line.
• Perry provided 10 bench points and was tied for the team lead with two 3-pointers.
• Andre Wilder (Beaver Falls, Pa./Lincoln Park) added eight points with a team-high 11 rebounds.
• Barksdale led the Gators with three blocks, and Portis recorded a team-best three steals.
• McLoyd and PJ Suggs paced the Yellow Jacket offense with 14 and 10 points, respectively.

News and Notes

• The Gators celebrated Greg Richards '08 Day on Saturday, remembering the life of the former men's basketball student-athlete.
• Allegheny improved to 3-0 in home games at Mullen Arena this season.
• The Gators have won four consecutive meetings against Waynesburg and increased their lead in the series to 12-3 all-time.
• Barker surpassed 20 points for the third time this season and reached double figures for the eighth time.
• Perry's 10 points are a single-game season-high.

Up Next
Allegheny has a 10-day hiatus before returning to action on Wednesday, December 20, against Penn State Shenango. Tip-off is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. inside the David V. Wise Center.