GREENVILLE, Pa. – The Thiel College men's basketball team defeated the Saint Vincent Bearcats, 83-50 in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game on Saturday.
Before the game, the Tomcats celebrated the seniors of the basketball team:
John Aarestrup (Miami, Fla./Archbishop Coleman Carroll),
Daquan Simmons (Capitol Heights, Md./Central),
Ahmad Tejumola (Waldorf, Md./Saint Charles), and
Andre Williams (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Boyd H. Anderson).
In the first half, the Bearcats and Tomcats remained close, but the Bearcats led 17-11 with 11:17 left in the half. The Tomcats then went to work with an 18-2 run to quickly flip the script and take a 29-19 lead. The Tomcats maintained a lead until halftime, leading 41-30 at the break.
In the second half, the Tomcats remained distanced and led by 12 with 11:37 to play. Thiel then went on a 15-0 run to gain a 66-39 lead with 8:40 left in the contest. The lead would be insurmountable for the Bearcats and the Tomcats would go on to lead by as many as 35 and win by 33, 83-50.
The Tomcats capitalized on the Bearcats' mistakes, scoring 26 points off turnovers to the Bearcats' eight. The Tomcats also received great contributions from the bench, with 45 points from non-starters.
Five Tomcats scored double-digit points, including
Beni Lavodrama (Washington, D.C./Phelps ACE) (15), Aarestrup (12),
Marlon Ellerbee (Temple Hills, Md./Oxon Hill) (11),
Ethan Barnes (Boynton Beach, Fla./Suncoast) (10), and
Rayshod Hooper (Baltimore, Md./St. Frances Academy) (10). Lavodrama also added eight rebounds, two blocks, and two steals. Ellerbee led the Tomcats with four assists. Barnes tied the team lead with three steals.
Tejumola tallied six points and grabbed nine boards with a block and three steals. Simmons hit three three-pointers for nine points and dished out three assists.
After today's games, the PAC officially announced the PAC Championship Tournament bracket. The sixth-seeded Tomcats will begin play in the quarterfinal round on Tuesday as they travel to Westminster to take on the Titans. Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for visiting students. PAC and institutional passes are not accepted at PAC Championship events.
