GETTYSBURG, PA – The Spartan men's basketball squad dropped a 67-65 overtime loss at Gettysburg on Saturday afternoon.
The Spartans held a 12-point lead midway through the second half but the Bullets forced overtime and then hit a game-winning shot with three seconds left in the extra session.
The Bullets improve to 4-0 while the Spartans fall to 1-2.
 
How It Happened
• The Bullets raced out to a 10-3 lead less than four minutes into the game. The Bullet lead was 17-10 on a Jordan Stafford basket with 10:14 left in the half. The Spartans fashioned an 14-7 run to tie the game at 24 with 6:03 left on the clock. Kai Cipalla had ten points on the run as he capped the spurt with his third three pointer of the run.
• Gettysburg answered with a 7-1 run of their own to push out to a 31-25 lead. York responded with an 8-2 spurt to tie the game at 33 at the intermission. York was hot from three in the first half as they went 8-for-15 (53.3%) from distance.
• The Bullets scored the first three points of the second half but the Spartans then ripped off a 15-1 run covering almost five minutes of play. Cipalla led the way with 11 points on the run as York was 7-for-9 from the floor including 1-for-2 from three. York kept the lead between eight and 12 points over the next seven minutes. The Spartans led 58-48 on a Tate Landis driving lay up with 6:27 left. That's when the Bullets began their comeback. Gettysburg went on a 10-0 run to end regulation as Carl Schaller tied the game with a pair of free throws with 1:07 left. The Spartans had a pair of possessions in the final minute but wouldn't be able to find the mark as the teams headed to overtime for the second straight year.
• The Bullets scored five of the first seven points of the overtime but Jackson Mascari hit a lay-up with 2:50 left and Cipalla gave the Spartans their final lead of the game with a lay-up with 1:45 left. Jordan Stafford hit a pair of free throws to give Gettysburg a one-point lead with 1:26 left but Cipalla split a pair of free throws with 35 seconds left to tie the game at 65.
• The Bullets had three cracks at winning the game but missed each time. The problem for York is they couldn't compete the stop as Gettysburg got a trio of offensive rebounds. The Bullets got the game winner on an inbounds play as Kosta Radulovic got the open look for the win. York tried a long throw into the front court but it was intercepted as the Bullets stunned the Spartans.
 
By The Numbers
York finished the game shooting 46.2% (24-for-52) from the floor including 44% (11-for-25) from three but the Spartans were a chilly 6-for-14 (43.9%) from the free throw line … Gettysburg was held to just 39.3% (24-for-61) from the floor including 1-for-15 (6.7%) but the Bullets held a significant 18-for-30 (60%) bulge from the free throw line … Gettysburg had a 39-36 edge in rebounds but 18 of those boards were offensive … there were 14 ties and eight lead changes in the game … York had eight assists to just five for the Bullets … York had 23 turnovers while the Bullets committed just 13 miscues … Gettysburg got 23 points off the Spartan miscues … the Bullets held a 28-24 edge in paint points … Gettysburg put three players in double figures led by 17 from Jordan Stafford.
 
Spartan Notes
York is now 14-17 all-time against Gettysburg as the Bullets have won two straight in the series … the two squads have gone to overtime in the last two games after not playing overtime in the previous 29 meetings … the Spartans made a season-high 11 three pointers … the Spartans have struggled at the free throw line as they are now shooting 46.3% (25-for-54) from the line this year … the Green and White had a season-high 36 boards in the game … York has been out-rebounded in all three games this year … the 23 turnovers were a season-high for York as they had a combined 20 miscues in their previous two games … senior Kai Cipalla led the way with 29 points and he has been a monster against the Bullets, scoring 62 points in his last two games against Gettysburg … Cipalla was 11-for-19 from the floor including 5-for-8 from three and 2-for-5 from the line … his five made threes set a new career high … Cipalla also had four rebounds and one steal in his 34 minutes of work … Tate Landis added eight points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal for the Spartans … Jackson Mascari and Pat Gilhool each had seven points while Jayden Rowe had seven rebounds for York.
 
Up Next
The Spartans continue their season-high five game road trip with a contest at Arcadia on Wednesday night from Glenside, PA. Tip time against the Knights is set for 7:00 pm.