West Chester, Pa. - Mercyhurst Men's Basketball returned to the court for the first time in over two weeks with them looking as fresh as possible in their win over the Golden Rams. The Lakers traveled to take on West Chester in the first of a back-to-back with Coach Manchel's crew grabbing a convincing 81-66 win thanks to a stellar second stanza.
How it Happened
The Lakers got out to an early 11-4 lead to help them grab the momentum from the tip. Jeff Planutis and Michael Bradley proved huge in the early going with nine of the team's first 11 points. Mercyhurst kept their opponent at arm's length for much of the remainder of the half with them able to claim a double-digit lead with 11:01 on the clock as Planutis drained a three-pointer to make it a 27-16 game, but the Golden Rams fought back.
After the made three, West Chester went on a 28-12 run to help them take a five-point lead into the halftime break. It was their work from the free throw line that helped them make a steady comeback as the Golden Rams went 10-13 from the charity stripe during the run. They eventually tied the game at 36-36 with just under three minutes remaining in the half before six made free throws helped West Chester take a 44-39 lead into the halftime break.
The second half ended up belonging to the Lakers as they outscored their opponent 42-22 in the second canto. Mercyhurst found their rhythm from the free throw line, going 16-19 while their defense also had a big role in the second-half surge. The Lakers allowed very little space for their counterpart to operate as the Golden Rams shot only 18.4% (7-38) in the second half.
The two teams played each other fairly even for the majority of the half. A triple by Nicholas Lang made it a tie game at 53-53 with 14:20 to go in the game before the two teams battled back-and-forth, being separated by six points or less for the next eight minutes. It was not until the final five minutes that things began to go in Mercyhurst's favor as they outscored West Chester 13-7 in that span thanks in large part to the Laker's free throw shooting, sealing their second victory of the year.
By the Numbers
Jeff Planutis led the way with 22 points in the game for a game-high, shooting 6-13 from the field and 8-9 from the charity stripe. He was followed by Michael Bradley who finished with 17 points and a trio of rebounds while collecting a steal. Pipeloluwa Ajayi ended up having a big night as well with 11 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season while also sending back one shot. As a team, Mercyhurst shot 46.7% from the field and knocked down 21 free throws for their most in a game since February 26, 2022, when they went 23-24 against Slippery Rock.
What's Next
The Lakers are back in action tomorrow as they stay on the road. Mercyhurst travels to take on Millersville in another action-packed PSAC matchup with the two teams set to begin at 3:00 p.m.
