West Chester Completes the Comeback to Top Millersville, 80-75
MILLERSVILLE, Pa. – West Chester completed a tremendous second half comeback by going on a 17-2 run to down host Millersville by a final score of 80-75 inside Pucillo Gymnasium Wednesday evening. A dunk by West Chester's Tyrell Long (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) tied the game up at 65 apiece to erase a 15-point deficit with 4:32 left in the second half. From that point forward, the game went back-and-forth as West Chester (13-13, 11-10 PSAC) and Millersville (7-14, 8-17 PSAC) exchanged buckets for the rest of the contest. Down the stretch, freshman Zach Bare (Reisterstown, Md. / St. Paul's School) attacked the lane to keep the Golden Rams in it. With 2:30 remaining, Bare managed to hit a fade away jumper to give West Chester its first lead of the second half. So., Jackson Hyland (Avondale, Pa./Kennett) gave the squad the lead for good with 59 ticks left by hitting a pair of free throws. Afterwards, he grabbed a loose ball and knocked down two more to extend the lead to four. Hyland finished the game with 13 points and 10 rebounds to earn a double-double. More importantly, Hyland shot 93 percent from the charity stripe (13-14) considering that is where all his points were accumulated. Shortly after, Long would seal the game with 28 seconds remaining for his team-high 24 point in addition to grabbing 11 rebounds. Bare was the third player in double-figures, contributing 21 points as well as five rebounds. Head coach Damien Blair's squad shot 43.3 percent from the field (26-60), 33.3 percent from behind the arc (4-12), and 75 from the line (24-32). The Golden Rams also registered a 36-24 advantage in points in the paint. Millersville's Jordan Greene added a game-high 31 points in the defeat. Overall, there was a total of 12 lead changes in the PSAC East showdown. West Chester returns to Hollinger Field House for the regular-season finale against Kutztown on Saturday. It will also be senior day for the Golden Rams as tip-off is set for 3 p.m. Additional Notes The Golden Rams have won four of their last five matchups headings into the regular-season finale. West Chester is currently slated fourth in the PSAC East standings with Bloomsburg right behind them. The outcome of Saturday's matchup will determine the location for the opening round of the PSAC Tournament.
