ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst men's basketball team beat Notre Dame College, 68-52, Wednesday night, at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. James Ewing had 13 points and eight rebounds to lead the Lakers to a non-league victory.
Coming into Wednesday night's game, the Falcons were averaging 90.0 points per game. The Lakers defense would see that did not happen, as they held NDC to 24.1% (13-54) shooting from the field.
The Lakers would never trail in the contest. They began to open up their lead in the first half by going on a 16-3 swing over a nine minute span.
The spurt began with Callon Dailey rejecting NDC's Oliver Megins, Andy Hoying grabbed the rebound and passed ahead to Ewing for a dunk. After two H'ian Hale made free-throws, Terrence Ingram drained one of his two three-pointers to put Mercyhurst up eight, 20-12.
Ewing would get another opportunity to slam one home after another Dailey block was rebounded by Gerrae Williams and passed along to a wide open Ewing at the other end. Ewing would follow the dunk with a layup on the next Lakers possession to increase the lead to 14, 26-12.
Sean Beins finished off the run with one of his two first half baskets, making the score 29-13 with 3:12 to play in the first. The Falcons would go onto score the next seven points, to cut the Mercyhurst lead to single digits. Williams converted a layup with 42 seconds on the clock, to give the Lakers a double-digit lead into the break, 31-21.
NDC would threaten Mercyhurst by making trips to the free-throw line in the second half. The Lakers led by as many as 19, but the Falcons would be rewarded with 18 second half free-throw attempts that helped them edge their way back into single digits.
Mercyhurst held an eight point lead with 6:52 remaining in the second half, 53-45. The defense stood tall once again in the final minutes, as Mercyhurst out-scored the Falcons 14-2 in a span of 4:40. With 2:12 remaining, the Lakers held a comfortable 19 point lead and finished off NDC's chances of a comeback.
Ewing's 13 points, eight rebounds, three blocks, and assist led the way to Mercyhurst's fifth consecutive victory. Williams and Beins each added 12 points.
With the win, Mercyhurst improves to 6-3 and remains 3-1 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) play. Notre Dame falls to 6-3 overall.
Mercyhurst will play host to West Chester in a PSAC crossover matchup Tuesday, December 16. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
