Bison cruise past Penn State Altoona in ECAC first round, 82-57

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

BETHANY, W.Va. (March 1) – All five starters scored in double-figures, as the Bison advanced to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Quarterfinals with an 82-57 win over Penn State Altoona Wednesday night inside the Hummel Field House.

The Bethany College men's basketball team improves to 16-12 overall and will face Moravian in the ECAC Quarterfinals at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 3 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Moravian earned a bye and is the top seed in the tournament. Meanwhile, the Lions end their season at 14-14 overall.

Junior guard Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) led the Bison with 20 points and senior guard Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) registered a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds to lead Bethany to the win. Junior center Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian) finished with 11 points, while junior guard Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) and senior forward Javonte' Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) each chipped in 10 points.

Both teams traded opening possession baskets, before the Bison built a 13-4 lead three minutes into the contest. Penn State Altoona pulled back within two, 24-22, with 8:48 remaining in the first half, but the Green & White out-scored the Lions 15-9 down the stretch to take a 39-31 lead into halftime.

After Penn State Altoona opened the second half with a trey, the Bison clamped down defensively. Bethany held the Lions to six points over the first six and a half minutes of the second half and built its lead to 50-37 in the process.

A basket by the Lions with 13:12 on the clock cut the Bison lead to nine, 50-41, the closest Penn State Altoona would get to Bethany. The Bison went on a 14-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 64-43 lead with nine minutes left in regulation to solidify their advantage. Bethany maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game to clinch its quarterfinal berth.

The Bison finished the game shooting 28-for-61 (46 percent) from the field, compared to the 20-for-70 (29 percent) posted by the Lions. Bethany held the rebound edge, 48-41, and finished the game with 20 assists.

Penn State Altoona never led at any point and the game was tied for only 43 seconds. The Lions were led by Javon Wilson who finished with a game-high 26 points.

Bethany will face Moravian in the ECAC Quarterfinals at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 3 in Erie, Pennsylvania. The remaining games of the ECAC Tournament, including the quarters, semis and final, will be held on the campus of Penn State-Behrend.