ERIE, Pa. – Behind a career-high 24 points from Sean Beins, the Mercyhurst men's basketball team won their seventh consecutive game. The Lakers went on to beat Cheyney, 82-70, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) crossover matchup.
The Lakers got off to a hot start, making five of their first nine shots from the floor to jump out to an early 10-2 lead. A steal by Callon Dailey led him to a fast break dunk which ignited the hot start. Damon Jones scored two of his 16 on a layup at the 14:12 mark to finish off the spurt.
Mercyhurst would see their lead increase to as much as 19 with 3:56 to play in the half. Another stellar defensive performance was the reason, as they held the Wolves to just 11 points in the first 16 minutes. Mercyhurst would hold Cheyney without a field goal for six minutes while they extended their lead. Cheyney's Jerrod Johnson would stop the scoring drought by making a three. The Lakers would take an 11 point lead into the break, 32-21.
The beginning of the second half was much of the same. Mercyhurst's defense would lead to open opportunities on the other end, as the Lakers shot a season-high 43 free-throw attempts, making 32 (74.4%). Mercyhurst would see their lead get as large as 24 points with just over ten minutes to play.
Their large lead wouldn't last long. Cheyney began to get hot from beyond the arc. The Wolves' Kevin Larkin went on a scoring spurt, as he paced Cheyney in scoring with 21. Larkin's fifth three of the second half cut the deficit to seven with 2:41 to play.
The Lakers would panic, as they nailed their free-throws down the stretch. Cheyney was charged with two technical fouls that sent Terrence Ingram to the line where he converted four straight at the charity stripe to give Mercyhurst another double digit lead.
Cheyney would follow the technical fouls with five straight points to cut the lead to eight with 1:33 remaining, but the Lakers would hold for the PSAC win.
Beins finished 10-15 from the field while teammates Jones and Ingram also scored in double figures. Jones finished with 16 and Ingram posted 10.
The Lakers finished the game outrebounding the Wolves on the glass, 44-31.
The win puts Mercyhurst at 8-3 overall and 5-1 in PSAC play. Cheyney falls to 1-9, 0-5 in the PSAC.
Mercyhurst will be back in action Saturday, December 20, when they travel to Millersville for another PSAC crossover contest. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m.
