3-0 Night Sees YSU Knock Off Georgia, CSU Advance in NIT

Men’s Basketball Scoreboard (Nov. 12)
Cleveland State 79, Bowling Green 73 (OT)
Youngstown State 68, Georgia 56
Loyola 64, Rockhurst 41

Youngstown State collected its first win over a SEC opponent, while Cleveland State moved within a game of a berth in the NIT Semifinals on Monday night. Loyola won its second game of the year, breezing past visiting Rockhurst.

Cleveland State 79, Bowling Green 73 (OT)
Trailing throughout the second half, Cleveland State rallied late to force overtime before taking control midway through the extra session to post a 79-73 victory over Bowling Green in the regional round of the NIT Season Tip-Off at Crisler Arena.

Cleveland State (2-0) will meet the winner of No. 5/5 Michigan’s game with IUPUI, with a berth in New York City on the line.

The three-point line played a prominent role in Cleveland State’s comeback, with the Vikings shooting 9-for-20, compared to a 3-for-16 mark for Bowling Green. Tim Kamczyc led the charge, going 5-of-10 from long range, including the game-tying three with 54.9 seconds left in regulation.

Bowling Green broke the CSU press on its next possession, taking the lead on an alley-oop, the Falcons’ fourth of the half. Charlie Lee came right back for the Vikings, hitting a long jumper off a left side pick-and-roll.

Tied at 66, Sebastian Douglas forced a Falcon turnover, but Anton Grady’s runner after a timeout was strong, sending Cleveland State to its first overtime since Nov. 17, 2007.

Down 70-68 early in overtime, the three-point arc aided the Vikings once more, as Kamczyc’s last triple of the game gave CSU a lead it would not relinquish, 71-70. After the Cleveland State press forced Bowling Green’s 15^th turnover of the game, Marlin Mason recorded his 13^th board and ninth point on a tip, extending the lead to 73-70.

Leading 75-73, the Vikings would need one more defensive stand, and got it on a missed layup in traffic by the Falcons. With a five-second difference on the clock, Mason was fouled and hit both free throws to make 77-73. With 11 points, Mason recorded his first career double-double.

Douglas closed the game with two more free throws after Bowling Green turned the ball over in the paint.

Kamczyc led the Vikings with 21 points, while Douglas finished with 16 after harassing Bowling Green’s point guard throughout the night.

Lee added 14 and Anton Grady 10 in limited minutes due to foul trouble. The Vikings’ turnover rate was key, as CSU committed just 11 for the game despite having 76 possessions.

Youngstown State 68, Georgia 56
Behind 23 points from Kendrick Perry, Youngstown State led from start to finish, knocking off Georgia in the opening round of the Legends Classic.

Youngstown State (2-0) was not particularly effective from beyond the three-point arc, shooting just 6-of-19, but held Georgia to 17-of-52 shooting for the game, including a 3-of-24 effort in the first half as YSU built an 11-point halftime lead.

After scoring six points in the first half, Perry took over in the second, scoring 17 as the Penguins held off the Bulldogs. The Horizon League’s leading scorer as a sophomore, Perry went 10-of-11 at the free-throw line to help seal the result.

After Georgia closed within 32-29 early in the second, YSU responded with a quick 6-0 burst before a flurry of three-pointers helped seal the result. Kamren Belin, Perry and Blake Allen all hit triples over a two-minute stretch that saw YSU turn a 42-33 lead into a 54-36 advantage with just over seven minutes remaining.

Georgia would not get the deficit under 10 points the remainder of the game.

Belin, in his second Division I game, had 17 points, leading the Penguins with three three-pointers. The forward added six rebounds as well.

Damian Eargle controlled the paint for YSU, posting his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The center added three blocks.

Loyola 64, Rockhurst 41
A balanced effort carried Loyola past visiting Rockhurst, 64-41, at the Joseph J. Gentile Arena on Monday night.

Eleven Loyola (2-0) players saw 10 or more minutes on the court, with only Ben Averkamp reaching double figures with 16 points and seven rebounds in 20 minutes.

Loyola shot nearly 50-percent on the night, going 27-for-55. Defensively, the Ramblers committed just eight personal fouls while forcing 15 Rockhurst turnovers.

After a sluggish first half, the Ramblers steadily pulled away in the final 20 minutes, using a 16-0 run early in the half to build a 20-point cushion. Jordan Hicks got the burst started with a three, before buckets from Averkamp, Joe Crisman and Christian Thomas extended the advantage to 35-19.

Devon Turk added a three and Jeff White capped the run with a layup to make it 40-19 with 14:10 to play.

Of the 14 Ramblers to see the court, 10 scored. Matt O’Leary, Tanner Williams and Jeff White each had eight points, with White adding five assists to the effort.