The Golden Rams men’s basketball team took care of business at home this past Wednesday against Lock Haven University.
In the first half, the Rams struggled to find their rhythm, turning the ball over 11 times in the game’s first 20 minutes.
Junior Frank Rokins kept the team afloat, scoring 14 of his 23 points in the first half on 6-7 shooting. Sophomore Amir Hinton, the second-leading scorer in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), scored 10 in the first half for Lock Haven. The teams went into the half tied at 38 points.
In the second half, WCU snapped out of their daze and took command of the game. Junior Jackson Hyland, senior Tyrell Long and junior Matt Penecale spearheaded the team’s second half surge that saw them put up nearly 70 points in 20 minutes.
Lock Haven didn’t have any answers for the Rams’ resurgence, and could only watch as WCU cruised to a 21-point victory in front of the home crowd.
Midway through the second half, Long stepped to the free-throw line with a chance to etch his name into the school’s history books. With the successful free throw, Long became only the 25th player in WCU men’s basketball history to score 1,000 or more career points—an accomplishment that he was proud to achieve in front of the home crowd.
On Saturday, WCU fell to an inspired East Stroudsburg team on the road.
Behind Hyland and Long’s double-figure scoring, the Rams took a small three-point lead into the locker room. In the second half, the Warriors of ESU played feverishly, jumping out to a ten-point lead that they would never relinquish. The Rams trimmed the lead a few times, but after every WCU bucket, East Stroudsburg had an answer.
The Rams lost 101-111, as they drop to 20-5 on the year and 16-5 in PSAC play.
Quaadree Harris is a fourth-year student majoring in communication studies and minoring in journalism. ✉ QH859675@wcupa.edu.