Cresson, Pa. -- Mount Aloysius men's basketball suffered a loss to Penn State Behrend this Saturday before defeating Hilbert on Sunday.

Game 1 (Behrend): 

Efficiency difficulties plagued the Mounties from the first minute of the game, while Behrend could not seem to miss. Missing just three shots in the first six minutes, the Lions jumped out to a 17-4 lead, with the Mounties going just 2-9 in the same stretch. The cold stretch would persist for the hosts as defensive issues began to mount, as Behrend would post 60% shooting from the floor and 50% from three in the first half, while the Mounties shot just 31% and 10%. 

Down 13 coming out of halftime, junior forward De'Von Haggans (Harrisburg, PA, Central Dauphin) would attack the paint, earning free throws and converting contested drives to pull the defense in. Junior guard Will Hagwood (Willowick, Ohio, South) would make the most of this newfound space, hitting three threes to even the score for the Mounties at the twelve minute mark. Finally it seemed the lid came off the basket for Mount Aloysius, with sophomore guard Ronnie McClain (Canton, Ohio, McKinley) scoring six straight for the hosts to flip the score to 57-51 in his team's favor. 

Behrend's offense would not be denied, however, and the Lions would recapture a double digit lead just five minutes of game time later. Down 11 with two minutes left to play, the Mounties would continue to battle, but fall 75-86 to the visitors.

Behrend would end the game shooting 50 / 40 / 80 as a team, showing the stark efficiency of their half court offense. Although the Mounties shooting percentages would skyrocket in the second half, the team's poor first half numbers kept the team to just 44 / 30 / 79 splits. Uncharacteristically, the Mounties found themselves outrebounded, with Behrend grabbing 28 to the Mounties 24. 


Game 2: (Hilbert):

Solid team play would spell success for the Mounties in Sunday's matchup. Both teams found success shooting early, with guard Trent Ramirez-Keller (Gettysburg, Pa., Gettysburg) hitting two threes early to keep the score even. Back and forth through the first ten minutes of action, McClain would check in from the bench and have his presence felt, shooting efficiently from inside and behind the arc while remaining active on defense. McClain would end with a team high 17 points on 5-8 shooting, while nabbing 2 steals and 4 rebounds. 

The Mounties kept the ball moving, finding success outside while continuing to pound the paint. Although the Mounties would end shooting an efficient 45.5% from three, they would continue to look inside, earning 36 points from looks in the paint. Forward Octavius Hardy (East Cleveland, Ohio, Euclid) would join McClain in having an impact from the bench, posting an 11 and 5 in 20 minutes of play. 

Taking a ten point lead into the half, the Mounties continued to find inside looks, shooting above 50% from the field across the second half. The Hawks struggled to defend Mountie drives without fouling, putting the hosts on the line 30 times across the forty minutes of action. Mount Aloysius maintained stronger discipline, giving Hilbert only 18 free throw opportunities. 

Despite high intensity throughout, Hilbert was unable to claw their way back from their deficit, struggling to cut into the Mountie lead. The visitors would shoot just 30% in the second half, going 0-7 from three. Hilbert also struggled to make free throws, shooting just 55% from the line. Despite these struggles, the Hawks took care of the ball at a higher rate than the Mounties, committing 11 turnovers compared to the Mounties' 19. Hilbert would also outpace the Mounties on the offensive boards, grabbing ten more and generating 17 more second chance points than their opponents. A final McClain free throw would end the game, 73-63 in the Mounties favor. 


Up Next: 

Mount Aloysius men's basketball hosts AMCC rival Penn State Altoona this Wednesday, January 31. PSA enters the contest 8-11 overall and 7-5 in conference, coming off a 81-78 win over Wells.