NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – The Thiel College men's basketball team defeated the Mount Union Purple Raiders Saturday, 81-76, at the Buzz Ridl Classic at Westminster College. With the win, Thiel improved to 2-0 on the season.
 
The Tomcats held a 10-point lead (22-12) with 8:29 remaining in the first half after going on a 10-1 run over a three-minute span. Ladell Trotty (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East) led the Tomcats during the run with a trio of jumpers while Anthony Harvey (New Castle, Pa./New Castle), Kamran McCaskill (Carol City, Fla./Miami Beach) and R.J. Brownlee (Donora, Pa./Ringgold) each contributed one layup. However, the Purple Raiders came back to take a 2-point lead at the half, 32-30.
 
The second half went back-and-forth until Chace McKinney (Boardman, Ohio/Kennedy Catholic) hit a three-pointer with 2:50 remaining in regulation to put the Tomcats up, 67-64. Thiel never trailed the rest of the way after sinking all 12 of its free throws down the stretch.
 
Four Tomcats finished the game with more than 10 points, led by Harvey, who made 7-of-10 shots from floor and went 8-of-12 from the charity stripe for a 23-point game. Harvey also recorded five rebounds, five steals and three assists. McKinney (17), Trotty (17) and McCaskill (15) also scored more than 10 points for Thiel. A.J. Forbes (Lighthouse Point, Fla./Pompano Beach) led the Tomcats with nine rebounds.
 
Cody Dillon and Nate Jacubec led Mount Union with 21 and 18 points, respectively. Dillon also pulled down eight rebounds.
 
The Tomcats (2-0) will be looking for their third straight win when they travel to Penn State Erie the Behrend College on Tuesday. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m.