Millersville, Pa. - Mercyhurst Men's Basketball looked for the weekend sweep during their first taste of PSAC play, but were denied Saturday evening in a loss to Millersville. The Marauders began to pull away in the final few minutes of a tightly contested ball game, winning by a final score of 84-73.

How it Happened

Millersville got off to a hot start as they jumped out to an early 10-2 lead thanks in part to a pair of made threes to open up the game. Mercyhurst battled back and went on a 6-1 run to make it an 11-8 game with 15:37 to go after a floater by Michael Bradley. He was followed by a pair of three-point plays with Aidan Reichert getting it done the old-fashioned way while Bradley connected from deep in the corner, making it a 16-14 game as the Marauders held onto a slim margin in the middle of the opening half.

After a cold stretch in the middle of the first half that saw the Lakers trail by as many as eight, Mercyhurst found a way to battle back and tie the game with just over a minute to go until the halftime break. It was their three-point shooting that helped the Lakers begin their run as Nicholas Lang, MiyKah McIntosh, and Jeff Planutis each made a three with Planutis' making it a 27-25 game as Millersville held onto a slim lead with 7:05 to go. 

Mercyhurst then began to work inside with a handful of buckets in the paint, pulling off the comeback as a putback layup from Pipeloluwa Ajayi tied things at 37-37. Millersville managed to compose themselves and go on a 6-0 run to end the quarter, though, and take a 43-37 lead into the locker room.

The game continued to be a tight one coming out of the locker room. After Millersville scored the first two baskets of the second half, the Lakers went on an 8-0 run to help them pull within two points at 47-45. For the next several minutes, the two teams stayed right with one another as neither squad could claim an advantage. Mercyhurst did manage to claw their way back to the lead with a dunk by Ciaran Sandy off the feed from Ajayi making it a 57-56 game with 11 minutes and change left in the game.

It was not until the final four minutes of the game that the Marauders began to pull away as they found themselves ahead 72-66 before going on a 12-7 run to close out the game. The Lakers did all they could to try and keep the game close, but a few timely buckets and half a dozen makes from the charity stripe for Millersville ended up giving Mercyhurst their first loss of the 2022-23 season by a final of 84-73.

By the Numbers

Jeff Planutis led the way for a second-straight game in scoring with 20 points on 5-11 shooting while going 8-8 from the free throw line. After scoring 22 points against West Chester yesterday, Planutis now has back-to-back games of 20 or more points for the first time in his career. He was followed by Michael Bradley who finished with 14 points and three steals and Ajayi with 12 who also added eight rebounds and a steal and block to his line. 

What's Next

Mercyhurst returns home for their next contest as they are set to host D'Youville in a midweek matchup on Wednesday, December 7th, with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.