GREENVILLE, Pa. (Jan. 4) -- The Thiel College men's basketball team's three-game home Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) winning streak came to an end Saturday as Grove City College posted a 69-48 win Saturday afternoon on Maenpa Court at Beeghly Gymnasium.

The Tomcats drop to 5-7 and 4-4 in league play while the Wolverines rise to 9-3 and 6-1 in PAC competition. 

Grove City led 7-2 at the first media timeout and extended their lead to as many 20 in the first half. The visitors took a 38-21 lead into the break thanks in part to making several well-contested jumpers late in the shot clock. The Wolverines shot 58.3 percent (14 for 24) from the field and 63.6 percent (7 for 11) from deep in the first 20 minutes. The Blue and Gold played nearly evenly in the second half but were outscored 30-27 to spell the 69-48 final.

The home side was unable to get any rhythm or flow offensively as the Wolverines' length and physicality proved troublesome for the high-percentage-shot-heavy Tomcats. 

Rob Thomas (Pittsburgh, Pa./Penn Hills) posted a team-best 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting and 2-of-2 at the charity stripe to go with a game-leading five steals and team-high six rebounds. Thomas has notched double-digit scoring efforts in five straight games and 7-of-12 contests on the year. The three-time PAC Newcomer of the Week now sits tied for 10th in the conference in steals per game (1.9). 

Marlon Ellerbee (Temple Hills, Md./Oxon Hill) pitched in 11 points on 3-of-14 from the field and 4-of-7 at the line. He has collected at least 10 points in six consecutive contests and 9-of-12 games on the year. He pulled down five boards and tallied a pair of steals. 

Mike Brown (Clinton, Md./Gwynn Park) notched 7 points on 3-of-10 to go with a trio of boards. Anthony Henderson II (Miramar, Fla./Somerset Academy) added 6 points on 2-of-5 shooting and 2-of-3 at the line to go with two steals. Khamari Accursio-Harris (Jupiter, Fla./Jupiter) pulled down five boards and had 4 points.

The Tomcats held the edge in points off turnovers (25-14), fast-break points (12-5), second-chance points (10-5) and points in the paint (30-26). Thiel also won the turnover battle with just 12 compared to Grove City's 20. 

The Wolverines shot 46.3 percent (25-of-54) from the field and 50 percent (11-of-22) from beyond the arc. The Tomcats shot the ball at a 30 percent (18-of-60) clip from the field and 25 percent (2-of-8) from deep. 

Men's basketball returns to action next Wednesday when take on Washington and Jefferson at 8 p.m. in a road PAC contest.