Box Score

GREENVILLE, Pa. – An exceptional second half, keyed by a tide-turning 23-4 run midway through the period, helped Bethany College extinguish a fine first half by Thiel College and post a 70-67 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) victory Saturday afternoon at Beeghly Gymnasium.

The win for Bethany (20-3, 12-2) avenged a 69-57 loss to the Tomcats on their own home court January 11 and gave them a one-game lead over Thiel for the top spot in the league heading into the final week of regular-season competition.

Nick Wilcox paced the Bison offensively, finishing with 18 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists. Brady Pacific finished with 16 points while British Alexander chipped in with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks. James Barton rounded out the four Bison double-digit scorers, finishing with 11.

Bethany, limited to just 32.5 percent (13-4) shooting in the first half, shot a sizzling 48.4 percent (15-31) in the second and finished with 45-35 advantage on the glass.

Anthony Harvey (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) led all scorers with a career-high 21 points while Chace McKinney (Boardman, Ohio/Kennedy Catholic) registered 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting and corralled six rebounds. Blair Rozenblad (Youngstown, Ohio/Kennedy Catholic) collected his 11th double-double of the season, totaling 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Thiel (15-7, 12-3) shot 48.1 percent (25-52) from the floor, but a 7-for-26 (26.9%) second half was an uncharacteristic turn of events after a converting on a blistering 18-of-26 (69.2%) of their chances in the first. Saturday's minus-10 rebounding margin was the Tomcats' fourth-straight game losing the rebounding battle after outrebounding their opponents in 14 of the season's first 18 games.

The Tomcats jumped out to an early 13-3 lead and after watching the Bison pull back to within three, 30-27, with 6:38 to play, outscored the visitors 16-6 down the stretch to secure a 46-33 halftime advantage.

A Harvey jumper at the 17:29 mark pushed Thiel back in front by 13, 50-37, but after watching the Bison put together a 23-4 over the ensuing 9:07 saw Bethany jump in front 60-54.
Bethany's late-game defensive effort held Thiel to no field goals in the final 5:56 and secured its three-point victory.

Thiel will be off until its annual Mercer County matchup with rival Grove City College on Saturday, February 18. Tipoff at Beeghly Gymnasium is slated for 3 p.m.